in my travels, i am constantly thinking 'They should have this over there', but I have no clue on how to go about importing and exporting. i am looking for book suggestions.

a couple of brief questions:

do you need permission from a company to resell their product in another country?

you see a product in a grocery store, how do you find the manufacture and negotiate a wholesale deal? often times, there is very little information to go by, and if you search online for the company and don't find anything, what is the next step?

once you import a product to another country, how do you go about getting it into stores?

how do you know whether or not you can legally manufacture (in regards to copyrights and patents) in another country. for example, i see a toy in the usa that i think would sell well in Asia. i go to a factory in china and then export them to japan, korea, and hong kong. obviously i can't start printing 'Monopoly' but if I see a cute candy dispenser, how do i know the extent of its trademark/copyright and legal boundaries?

You ask a number of interesting questions.

1) You may not need the company's permission to sell legally purchased products in a different market, BUT, that company may have a licensing or agent agreement with someone in your intended market and that may cause you grief. See point 4.

2) Items in the grocery store, I will quote the advise given to me when I was setting up. "Buy a sample of the product and get a Thai person to phone the company to try to get supply, the contact details are on the packaging." I will add to that, make sure the person you are using to contact the company is well educated, speaks well and is familiar with doing business, the girlfriend d'jour may not have the negotiating skills to deal with a snotty rep. As to searching on line for information in this country, well, you're new here aren't you?

3)

once you import a product to another country, how do you go about getting it into stores?

If you do not know the answer to this question it would be better to back to your job.

4) Copyright is issued on a country by country basis. The US would like to think otherwise, but that is the way most countries have written their laws. That said, most popular toys are made by large corporations who have deep pockets, and tend to have aggressive legal representation. As a friend who was being given grief by a consumer said, "Have your lawyer contact our legal department."

do you know what kind of import taxes there will be to take artwork from Thailand to the united states?

thanks.

http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/bychapter/index.htm

click your way through it and you will eventually find the right tarrif code.

...or ask the freight forwarder of your trust to help you with it. If you PM me, I can recommend you one..