Kendrick Trade builds focused tools for customs brokers, freight forwarders, and trade compliance teams. No platform bloat. No digital transformation pitch. Just software that solves two specific problems: USMCA qualification and supplier document collection.
Most trade compliance software starts with a platform vision. Dashboards, modules, integrations — a system designed to convince a VP of Supply Chain that the problem is solved. But the people who actually file the paperwork, qualify the goods, and answer the auditor's questions don't need a platform. They need a tool that does one thing correctly, every time, without making them fight the interface.
We started with USMCA qualification because it's the problem customs brokers told us about most. A spreadsheet with RVC formulas that someone emailed around in 2019. A product-specific rule of origin that changed six months ago but nobody updated. A qualification analysis that takes hours because you have to cross-reference a 200-page appendix by hand.
Then we heard the second problem: supplier documents. The PDFs that get forwarded six times. The supplier who won't create an account on yet another portal. The certificate of origin that ends up as an illegible photo in someone's inbox. Auditors show up, and the audit trail is a collection of email timestamps and crossed fingers.
So we built two tools. Each one solves its problem completely. Each one works standalone. Both work better together.
Every feature we build has to answer one question: does this make a compliance professional's day easier, or does it just look good in a demo?
That question kills most ideas before they reach a sprint. It keeps the product focused. It means we build fewer things, but the things we build actually work for the person on the front line — the one who has to get it right because the alternative is a customs penalty, a denied entry, or an audit finding they can't explain away.
What we believe
Trade compliance is detail work. The rules change, the data is messy, and the consequences of getting it wrong are real. Our software is built on assumptions that match that reality.
When a product qualifies for USMCA, you should know exactly which rule was applied and why. When a supplier document is rejected, the supplier should know what's missing and how to fix it. Compliance software that hides its reasoning is worse than no software at all — it creates false confidence. Every determination Kendrick Trade produces includes the specific rule, the data that triggered it, and a plain-English rationale you can hand directly to an auditor.
A tariff shift that looks right at a glance can fail on line 14 of the appendix. An RVC calculation that's off by half a percent can mean the difference between duty-free entry and a bill your customer didn't expect. We maintain a dedicated update cadence for the rules engine because product-specific rules of origin don't stay current by accident. The software is only as trustworthy as the rules it applies.
The visible problem is "we need to qualify this product" or "we need to collect this document." The real problem is deeper: the qualification won't hold up under audit, the supplier will ghost you, the person who understood the analysis will leave the company, and when CBP asks for records you'll be rebuilding from memory. We design for the real problem. That means audit trails that start on click one, supplier workflows that accept paper scans, and determinations that include their own defense.
Good software doesn't hide complexity. It makes complexity manageable.
What makes Kendrick Trade different
Most software in this space was designed for a boardroom demo. We designed ours for the person who has to get it right before the filing deadline.
A structured bill-of-material entry guides you through every component, catches missing data before it becomes a problem, and checks each part against a maintained rules database covering product-specific rules, tariff shifts, and RVC thresholds under both transaction value and net cost methods. What used to take an afternoon of spreadsheet work now takes minutes.
Every action in both tools is captured in a permanent, unalterable log. Who sent the solicitation, when the supplier responded, what data they provided, what was approved, what was rejected and why. For USMCA qualification, the specific rule applied and the exact data that triggered the result. When CBP or CBSA asks, you export a record that already exists — you don't reconstruct one from memory.
Most suppliers won't adopt new software. They won't create an account. We accepted that reality and built around it. They fill out a form online, add an e-signature, or upload a photo of a paper certificate. When they upload a scan, our AI reads it and maps the data into the right fields. The supplier just clicks submit. Compliance moves forward.
No assembly required. No panic later.
Example audit rationale attached to every USMCA determination:
Product qualifies under USMCA because thenon-originating engine assembly (HS 8407.34)undergoes the required tariff shift tofinished vehicle (HS 8703.23)per GN 12(t)/11.4, and the RVC using the net cost method is62.3%, exceeding the required60%threshold.
We value your feedback
We value your feedback! We are committed to continuously improving our technology to better serve your compliance needs.
Founder, Kendrick Trade
“Your input is invaluable. We invite you to share your thoughts and suggestions on how we can further enhance our solution – or build new solutions – to help you manage your compliance programs more effectively. Your insights will shape the future of trade compliance for all”