Imports Supervisor – Ocean Imports & FTZ Operations
IP TRADINGAbout the Role IP Trading Florida LLC, a leading food and beverage importer and distributor serving major cruise lines and commercial customers, is seeking an experienced Imports Supervisor with a strong background in ocean freight imports, international container logistics, and Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) operations . This is a hands-on leadership position responsible for managing the full lifecycle of inbound ocean imports —from overseas shipment coordination and documentation through vessel arrival, customs/FTZ processing, port availability, container pickup, and final warehouse delivery. The ideal candidate has significant experience managing high-volume ocean container imports and understands the operational challenges associated with vessel schedules, steamship lines, port terminals, customs brokers, freight forwarders, drayage carriers, and international shipping documentation. In addition to ocean import operations, this position will oversee our FTZ compliance and administration function and lead the imports team. Key Responsibilities Ocean Import Operations: Manage and supervise the complete inbound ocean import process for containerized shipments from international suppliers through final warehouse delivery. Container & Vessel Tracking: Monitor bookings, vessel departures, transshipments, ETA changes, port arrivals, container availability, customs status, and delivery schedules. Carrier & Forwarder Coordination: Work closely with ocean carriers, freight forwarders, customs brokers, port terminals, and drayage providers to ensure shipments move efficiently and issues are resolved quickly. Demurrage & Detention Management: Proactively manage container availability, last free days, pickup scheduling, and empty returns to minimize demurrage, detention, storage, and other unnecessary logistics costs. International Shipping Documentation: Review bills of lading, commercial invoices, packing lists, arrival notices, certificates, and customs documentation for accuracy and completeness. Drayage & Warehouse Coordination: Coordinate container pickups and deliveries with transportation providers and warehouse operations based on availability, inventory requirements, and operational priorities. Exception Management: Identify and resolve delayed vessels, rolled containers, documentation issues, customs holds, port congestion, missed pickups, and other shipment exceptions. FTZ Operations & Compliance: Oversee Foreign Trade Zone documentation, admissions, entries, withdrawals, inventory controls, reconciliation, and regulatory compliance. Customs & Trade Compliance: Maintain strong knowledge of U.S. Customs procedures, tariff classifications, duties, bonded cargo, FDA requirements, and other regulations applicable to imported products. Systems & Data Management: Ensure import, FTZ, and shipment information is accurately maintained within company ERP, inventory, and logistics systems. Team Leadership: Lead, train, and manage the imports team while establishing clear procedures, accountability, and shipment follow-up standards. Broker & Vendor Management: Maintain strong relationships with customs brokers, ocean carriers, freight forwarders, drayage providers, and other logistics partners. Reporting & Analysis: Provide management with visibility into inbound containers, shipment exceptions, port delays, demurrage/detention exposure, and other key import KPIs. Process Improvement: Continuously improve container tracking, documentation controls, communication, systems utilization, and overall import workflows. Required Qualifications 5+ years of hands-on ocean import experience , preferably managing high-volume containerized imports into the United States. Demonstrated experience managing the full ocean import lifecycle , from overseas shipment through U.S. port arrival, customs clearance, container pickup, and warehouse delivery. Strong working knowledge of ocean carriers, port terminals, freight forwarders, customs brokers, and dr…