VENDOR MANUAL FOR INDIGO PRIVATE LABEL VENDORS

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VENDOR MANUAL

FOR

INDIGO PRIVATE LABEL

VENDORS

VERSION 8.0

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v 8.0 November 2021

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 7

INDIGO VENDOR CODE OF CONDUCT ................................................................................................... 8

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION ............................................................................................................ 12

INDIGO OPEN-DOOR POLICY ................................................................................................................ 13

SECTION 1 – VENDOR ONBOARDING .................................................................................................... 14

VENDOR REGISTRATION ...................................................................................................................... 14

1.1 Indigo Vendor Agreement ........................................................................................................ 15

1.2 Certificate of Insurance ............................................................................................................. 15

1.2.1 Insurance Coverage Requirements .................................................................................. 15

1.2.2 Insurance Requirements by Product Category ............................................................... 16

1.3 Social Compliance Program ..................................................................................................... 17

1.3.1 Social Compliance Policy Statement ............................................................................... 17

1.3.2 Vendor Code of Conduct .................................................................................................. 17

1.3.3 Social Compliance Audit .................................................................................................. 17

SECTION 2- EDI EXPECTATIONS & ONBOARDING ................................................................................. 19

2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 19

2.2 E-Commerce Standards ................................................................................................................ 19

2.3 Benefits of EDI ................................................................................................................................. 19

2.4 EDI Transaction Set ......................................................................................................................... 20

2.5 Indigo’s EDI Service Provider ......................................................................................................... 20

2.6 EDI Onboarding with Indigo .......................................................................................................... 20

2.7 EDI Enabled Vendors – Testing & Certification ............................................................................. 21

2.8 EDI Transmissions ............................................................................................................................ 21

2.9 GS1-128 Label ................................................................................................................................ 22

2.10 Vendor EDI Contacts ..................................................................................................................... 21

2.11 Indigo EDI Contacts ..................................................................................................................... 22

SECTION 3 – ARTICLE SET-UP .................................................................................................................. 23

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ARTICLE SET-UP: PIM (PRODUCT INFORMATION MANAGEMENT) ........................................................ 23

3.1 Benefits of PIM ................................................................................................................................ 24

3.2 Riversand PIM Vendor Registration ............................................................................................... 24

3.3 Product Data Quality ..................................................................................................................... 24

3.4 French Translation .......................................................................................................................... 25

3.5 Key Links & Contacts...................................................................................................................... 26

3.6 Product Data Compliance ............................................................................................................ 26

UPC (UNIVERSAL PRODUCT CODE) LABELS ........................................................................................... 28

SECTION 4 – PURCHASE ORDERS & INVOICE PAYMENTS ...................................................................... 29

PURCHASE ORDER PROCESS .................................................................................................................. 29

4.1 Purchase Order Detail.................................................................................................................... 29

4.2 Purchase Order Dates .................................................................................................................... 29

4.3 Purchase Order Line Items ............................................................................................................ 30

4.4 Purchase Order Freight/INCO Terms ............................................................................................ 30

4.5 Purchase Order Acknowledgement (POA) ................................................................................. 31

4.6 Purchase Order Change Process ................................................................................................. 31

INVOICE PAYMENT & BILLINGS .............................................................................................................. 32

4.7 Invoices ........................................................................................................................................... 32

4.7.1 Invoice Payment .................................................................................................................... 32

4.8 Billing for Compliance Chargebacks ........................................................................................... 32

4.8.1 Invoice & Billing Inquiries ...................................................................................................... 33

SECTION 5 – SAMPLE PROCESS & PRODUCT QUALITY ........................................................................... 34

SAMPLE PROCESS ............................................................................................................................... 34

5.1 Sample Tag. ..................................................................................................................................... 34

a. Development Sample .......................................................................................................... 34

b. T.O.P. Sample........................................................................................................................ 34

c. Media/Photo Sample ........................................................................................................... 35

d. Pre-production Sample ....................................................................................................... 35

5.2 Product Worksheet (PWS). .............................................................................................................. 35

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5.3 T.O.P. (Top Of Production) Samples ............................................................................................... 36

5.4 Delayed Samples Due to Customs Issues ..................................................................................... 36

5.5 Sample Courier Protocol & Process ............................................................................................... 36

5.6 Sample Approval Process .............................................................................................................. 38

5.7 Sample Packaging & Labelling Guidelines .................................................................................. 39

SECTION 6 – PRODUCT COMPLIANCE AND QUALITY ............................................................................ 41

6.1 Product Quality Policies ................................................................................................................. 41

6.1.1 Product Compliance Policy .................................................................................................. 41

6.1.2 Private Label Policy ................................................................................................................ 41

6.1.3 Product Incident Management ............................................................................................ 41

6.1.4 Product Withdrawal or Recall ................................................................................................ 41

6.1.5 Bilingual Packaging and Labelling Requirements .............................................................. 42

6.2 Product Testing Procedures ........................................................................................................... 42

6.2.1 Product Testing Request ......................................................................................................... 42

6.2.2 Test Protocols .......................................................................................................................... 43

6.2.3 Transit Testing (Package Testing) .......................................................................................... 43

6.2.4 Test Invoices and Payments .................................................................................................. 43

6.2.5 Pre-Shipment Inspection ....................................................................................................... 44

6.3 Food/Gourmet Vendors – Additional Requirements ................................................................... 44

6.3.1 Indigo Allergen Checklist ...................................................................................................... 44

6.3.2 Marketing Samples ................................................................................................................ 44

6.3.3 Product Codes ........................................................................................................................ 44

6.3.4 Indigo Quality Assurance Samples For Review ................................................................... 45

6.3.5 Temperature Control .............................................................................................................. 45

SECTION 7 - SUPPLY CHAIN EXECUTION & VENDOR COMPLIANCE .................................................... 46

VENDOR PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM (VPM) ................................................................ 46

THE PERFECT ORDER GUIDELINE .............................................................................................................. 46

7.1 On-Time Delivery/Shipment/ASN Delivery (“On Time”) ............................................................. 46

7.1.1 On-Time Shipment (OTS) ........................................................................................................ 46

7.1.2 On-Time Booking .................................................................................................................... 47

7.1.3 On-Time Delivery (OTD) - to DC (Where Applicable) ......................................................... 48

7.1.4 On-Time ASN (Advance Shipping Notice) ........................................................................... 49

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7.2 Fill Rate - (“Complete”) ................................................................................................................. 49

7.3 Accurate Documentation (“Accurate”) ...................................................................................... 49

7.3.1 ASN Accuracy (EDI Vendors only) ....................................................................................... 50

7.3.2 Bill of Lading Accuracy .......................................................................................................... 50

7.3.3 Packing Slip Accuracy .......................................................................................................... 51

7.3.4 Invoice Accuracy .................................................................................................................. 52

7.4 In Good Condition (Shipment Quality) ........................................................................................ 53

7.4.1 Case & Pallet Labelling Guideline ........................................................................................ 53

7.4.2 Master/Case & Pallet Labelling Requirements for EDI Vendors ......................................... 53

7.4.3 Master/Case Labelling Requirements for Non-EDI Vendors ............................................... 60

7.4.4 Inner Case/Pack Labelling Requirements (EDI & Non-EDI Vendors) ................................. 62

7.4.5 Labelling for Specialty Products- EDI & Non-EDI Vendors .................................................. 63

7.4.6 Labelling Compliance To Canadian Laws & Regulations ................................................... 63

7.5 Packing Guideline .......................................................................................................................... 65

7.5.1 Inner/Outer Case Pack Requirements ................................................................................. 66

7.5.2 Carton Specific Packaging Requirements ........................................................................... 66

7.5.3 Inner Packaging Material Requirements ............................................................................. 68

7.5.4 Pallet Specific Packaging Requirements (where applicable) ........................................... 69

7.5.5 Packaging for Specialty Products ........................................................................................ 71

7.5.6 Additional Packaging Requirements ................................................................................... 72

7.5.7 Price Sticker Specification & Placement Guideline (for DC orders) .................................. 73

7.5.8 Damage-Free Shipment/Product ......................................................................................... 73

SECTION 8 VENDOR COMPLIANCE PROGRAM ................................................................................... 74

Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 74

8.1 Compliance Chargebacks ........................................................................................................... 74

8.2 Measuring Non-Compliance & Notifications ............................................................................... 80

8.3 Quarantine ....................................................................................................................................... 80

8.4 Compliance Charge Dispute Process ........................................................................................... 80

SECTION 9 – SHIPPING GUIDELINES ....................................................................................................... 82

9.1 Freight Terms & Responsibilities ..................................................................................................... 83

9.2 Inbound Shipment Requirements ................................................................................................. 84

9.2.1 Packing Slip ............................................................................................................................ 84

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9.2.2 Bill of Lading ............................................................................................................................ 85

9.2.3 International (Air & Sea) Transportation Document Requirements .................................... 86

9.2.4 Physical Presentation Requirments ....................................................................................... 86

9.3 Routing Instructions ........................................................................................................................ 86

9.4 Domestic Shipments Procedure ................................................................................................... 87

9.5 International Shipments Procedure & Additional Requirements ................................................ 88

9.5.1 V. SOLAS Requirements & VGA Declaration ........................................................................ 89

9.5.2 Original Customs Documents ............................................................................................... 90

9.5.3 Canadian Customs Clearance Document Requirements ................................................. 91

9.5.4 Canada Customs Invoice/Commercial Invoice ................................................................. 93

9.5.5 From “A” Certificate of Origin ............................................................................................... 93

9.5.6 NAFTA ...................................................................................................................................... 94

9.5.7 NAFTA Certificate of Origin ..................................................................................................... 94

9.5.8 NAFTA Low Value Declaration ............................................................................................... 95

SECTION 10 - CONTACTS ....................................................................................................................... 96

SECTION 11 - APPENDICES ..................................................................................................................... 99

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CHANGE LOG

Section

status

Guideline

Vendor Code of

Conduct

updated

Indigo VENDOR CODE OF CONDUCT- updated with Cotton clause under Forced

Labour

Diversity, Equity &

Inclusion

new

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Indigo Open-Door

Policy

new

Indigo Open-Door Hotline

Vendor Registration

updated

Changes to vendor registration process

1.1 Indigo Vendor

Agreement

updated

Name change (formerly referred to as the Purchase Agreement)

1.3.2 Insurance

Requirements by

Product Category

updated

Updated requirements for liability insurance coverage by product category (see

appendix for full list of required coverage by category)

1.4.3 Social

Compliance Audit

updated

Updated list of Accepted Audits

Section 2 - EDI

Expectations &

Onboarding

updated

EDI Service Provider update, including introduction of InterTrade’s ecCatalogue for

product data; new table identifying EDI transactions & frequency expectations;

updated EDI contacts

Section 3 - Article Set-

updated

French Translation resource update

Product Data Compliance

Section 4 - Purchase

Order Process

updated

Updates to 4.5 POA and 4.6 PO Change Process sections

Section 5 – Sample

Process & Product

Quality

updated

Sample Tag updates; PWS update

5.5 – Sample Courier

Protocol & Process

new to the

manual

Updated info (newly included in the vendor manual)

5.6 – Sample Approval

Process

new to the

manual

(newly included in the vendor manual)

5.7 – Sample

Packaging & Labelling

Guidelines

new to the

manual

(newly included in the vendor manual)

5.5 Product

Compliance & Quality

updated

Updates to the section

7.5 Packing Guideline

updated

New references to Online DC packing requirements

8.4 Compliance

Charge Dispute

Process

updated

Updated process – all disputes to be initiated on the Compliance portal

Section 8 - Contacts

updated

Updates to Contacts

Section 9 -

APPENDICES

updated

Updates to:

• COI requirements matrix – by product type

• Customs Tariff – Schedule: updated link provided

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INTRODUCTION

Our goal at Indigo Books & Music Inc. is to delight our customers with a unique shopping

experience while meeting the needs of our employees, shareholders and other stakeholders

including our vendor community.

The purpose of this document is to communicate to our vendors Indigo’s supply chain

requirements in pursuit of this goal. We are committed to being a world class supply chain

organization focused on delivering the right product to the right place at the right time at the

right cost without defect. We want to have a mutually rewarding relationship with our vendors;

this manual is designed to help both organizations realize this.

This document will guide you through Indigo’s expectations for each of the following:

• Vendor Code of Conduct

• Vendor Set-up

• EDI Set-up

• Article/Product Data Set-up

• Purchase Orders

• Supply Chain Execution & Vendor Compliance

• Shipping Guidelines

We expect that the requirements contained in this document are communicated both within

your organization and to your suppliers and sub-contractors that produce or provide materials or

services used in the manufacture of goods sold to Indigo, to ensure that they too are in

compliance, where applicable.

We believe our expectations are fair and support the goals of being mutually rewarding for

each organization. We thank you in advance for doing your best to meet these expectations.

The most updated version of this Vendor Manual is also available at indigo.ca in the About

Indigo/Vendors & Authors section.

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INDIGO VENDOR CODE OF CONDUCT

Indigo Books & Music Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “Indigo”) is committed to doing

business in a legal, ethical, socially responsible and sustainable manner. In turn, Indigo

expects its suppliers, agents, service providers, and contractors (collectively, “Vendors”) to

embrace this commitment to integrity by complying with the standards detailed in this

Vendor Code of Conduct (the “Code”) and communicating these standards to their

workers and suppliers. We insist that our Vendors and their suppliers uphold the highest

ethical standards in their workplace, business practices, conduct and policies. In addition to

adhering to this Code, Vendors must always comply and stay updated with local laws and

regulations in each of the countries in which they do business. Where there is a differing

standard between this Code and the local legal requirements, Vendors must comply with

the higher standard.

This Code is based on the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International

Labor Organization Conventions and Recommendations and other internationally accepted

standards.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

Vendors’ business and labour practices must comply with the laws and regulations of the

countries in which they conduct business. Furthermore, Vendors must comply with the

requirements of this Code, even when this Code exceeds the requirements of those

applicable laws and regulations.

LABOUR PRACTICES

Child Labour

Indigo will not tolerate the use of child labour. Vendors, and any subcontractors they use,

shall not employ in any of their facilities any person under 15 years of age. Where the

minimum age for work or mandatory schooling is higher than 15 years of age by local law

(where work is performed), such stipulated higher age applies in that locality. Workplace

apprenticeship programs must comply with all applicable local laws and this Code. ILO

Conventions 79, 182 apply.

Forced Labour

Vendors shall not engage in or support forced or compulsory labour, including slave, prison,

trafficked, indentured, or bonded labour in any of their facilities or their subcontractor

facilities. Workers must not be coerced to work (regular or overtime hours) by means of

violence or intimidation, and must have sought work on their own free will and have the

freedom to leave work or terminate their employment with reasonable notice. Neither the

Vendor nor any entity supplying labour to the Vendor shall withhold any part of any

personnel’s salary, benefits, property or documents in order to force such personnel to

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continue working for the organization. Workers must be given clear contracts in a language

understood by the worker. ILO Conventions 29 and 105 apply.

Due to forced and underage labour in the Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan cotton regions, all

vendors supplying cotton or products containing cotton (“Cotton Products”) to Indigo must

certify that any Cotton Products sold to Indigo do not contain and are not sourced from

cotton that originates from the countries of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

Discrimination/Human Rights

Vendors shall not engage in or support discrimination in hiring, remuneration, access to

training, promotion, termination, discipline, retirement or any other term or condition of work

(other than legitimate occupational requirements allowed by law) on the basis of race,

colour, national or territorial or social origin, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion, faith, political

opinion, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, same-sex partnership status, family

status, disability, or any other condition that could give rise to discrimination. ILO

Conventions 100, 111 and 156 apply.

Disciplinary Practices

Vendors shall treat all personnel with dignity and respect. Vendors shall not engage in or

tolerate the use of corporal punishment or other forms of mental or physical coercion, or

verbal abuse of their workers.

Harassment & Abuse

Vendor shall not abuse or harass workers, whether physical, psychological or sexual. No

harsh or inhumane treatment will not be tolerated.

Wages and Benefits

Vendors must compensate all workers with wages, including overtime, that meet or exceed

minimum legal standards in the countries in which they conduct business, or by their

collective agreements, whichever is greater. The wage paid shall be sufficient to cover the

basic needs of workers and their families. Illegal deductions from wages including

deductions as a disciplinary measure are prohibited. Wages must be disbursed in a

convenient and timely manner to workers with the detail of pay provided on a pay slip or

similar documentation. Vendors must also provide all legally mandated benefits. ILO

Conventions 26, 95 and 131 apply.

Working Hours

Vendors shall comply with the applicable local laws of working hours of the countries in

which they conduct business, or with industry standards and relevant ILO conventions,

whichever standards are more stringent. In either case, a worker’s weekly hours must not

exceed 48 hours or 60 hours with overtime, on a regular basis. Workers must be permitted to

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receive at least one (1) day (24 hours) of rest following each six (6) consecutive days of work.

Overtime must be voluntary and vendor must compensate workers for overtime at the legal

premium rate. ILO Conventions 1 and 14 apply.

Freedom of Association/ Worker Representation

Vendor shall respect the right of workers to form or join at their own discretion an association

or organization dedicated to protecting and promoting worker interests. Vendor shall not

interfere with or inhibit the workers’ pursuit of freedom of association and collective

bargaining, where legally permitted. Where restricted by law, workers must be allowed to

pursue parallel means to freely associate for bargaining purposes. Vendors must provide an

open and anonymous communication channel for workers to report grievances. ILO

Conventions 87, 98, 135, 154 apply.

HEALTH & SAFETY

Vendors shall provide a safe and healthy working environment in structurally sound buildings

consistent with all applicable local building, fire, electrical and chemical safety laws and

regulations. Vendors shall also protect workers by ensuring they are not exploited, nor

exposed to dangerous, unsafe or hazardous conditions. Vendors shall adopt required

measures and implement adequate systems to prevent, detect and avoid potential health

and safety incidents and occupational injury or illness arising out of, associated with or

occurring in the course of work. Vendors must guarantee that workers are provided regular

training on health and safety requirements. Factories must provide good ventilation, access

to clean drinking water, sufficient and clean toilets and washing facilities, first aid supplies,

and personal protective equipment. Where housing or dormitories are provided for workers,

they must be separate from production areas and must be kept safe, healthy and sanitary.

ILO Convention 155 applies.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

Vendors must comply with all applicable, local environmental laws and regulations, and

shall commit to using practices to protect the environment by preventing contaminations

due to hazardous materials or other dangerous substances resulting from production and

operations within their facilities. Vendors shall maintain processes and standards for waste

management, emissions, wastewater treatment, handling and disposing of chemical and

hazardous substances, and for reporting any environmental accidents that may occur

during operations.

ETHICAL CONDUCT

Vendors shall not engage in, or allow, any unethical practices such as fraud, bribery,

corruption, or any matters that may pose a conflict of interest when dealing with Indigo or

any worker, agent, public official, or an individual in the private sector. Vendors shall provide

a mechanism or means by which workers may report anonymous workplace grievances and

shall protect worker whistleblower confidentiality and prohibit retaliation.

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SUB-CONTRACTING

Vendors must ensure that all permitted subcontractors comply with the requirements of this

Code.

MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

Vendors must develop and maintain management systems to implement, monitor and

ensure compliance with this Code. This must include clear processes, policies,

documentation, appointment of staff responsible for implementation, ongoing monitoring,

and worker feedback and participation. In the event of any violation of the Code’s

requirements, Vendors must document and take prompt remedial action. Documentation

and records must be maintained and be readily available upon request.

Indigo is committed to ensuring that our vendors and their suppliers uphold the highest

ethical standards in workplace conditions and labour practices. Our sourcing policies are

subject to change at any time in Indigo’s sole discretion.

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DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are at the heart of what we do at Indigo, we are committed to

providing an assortment that reflects the diversity of our society.

We have joined the 15% pledge to ensure we partner intentionally with even more diverse

vendors to bring our customers a joyful experience.

If you would like more information about our DEI initiatives, please contact diversity@indigo.ca

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INDIGO OPEN-DOOR POLICY

At Indigo, we have a strong and long-standing commitment to doing the right thing, and we

have zero tolerance for unethical conduct. In line with this commitment, we have set up the

Indigo Open Door Hotline as outlined below.

If you wish to report unethical behavior or a possible violation of the Indigo Vendor Code of

Conduct, you are encouraged to work with your primary Indigo contact in resolving your

concern. If that is not possible or appropriate, please use the Indigo Open-Door Hotline.

The Indigo Open Door Hotline is available to external parties to confidentially communicate any

Code of Conduct concerns or violations with respect to Indigo employees and the Vendors that

Indigo conducts business with. Any person who believes that a violation of the Indigo Vendor

Code of Conduct or Employee Code of Conduct has occurred is asked to report the incident in

confidence as follows:

By phone: 1 (888) 881-3177 (North American toll free)

Or by visiting: www.IndigoOpenDoor.ca (North American & international submissions)

Please refer to the quick video link for an overview on how to make a submission online:

Introducing Indigo Open Door

Indigo will make every effort to investigate all reported violations in a discreet, fair and

confidential manner, and will take appropriate action, as required, to maintain the integrity of its

business.

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SECTION 1- VENDOR ONBOARDING

VENDOR REGISTRATION

New vendors will be sent an invitation email to register on the Indigo Vendor Hub (onboarding

portal). Vendors should be prepared to provide the required information on the Registration

Checklist (below) prior to proceeding with registration.

There are also additional reference documents that vendors should review to understand

Indigo’s complete supply chain requirements – these can be found on the Indigo Vendor Hub in

the Help section by selecting Vendor Documents:

• Vendor Manual (this document)

• Packing Guidelines – Online, Retail & Drop Ship

• Drop Ship Vendor Guide (for Drop Ship vendors only)

• Introduction to Indigo’s PIM (Product Information Management) System

• EDI at Indigo Overview

• Preparing Your First Shipment to Indigo (checklist)

Private Brand vendors will also be required to submit a valid Social Compliance Audit for each

factory where the sourced product is being manufactured; this may also apply to some National

Brand vendors, as required (please refer to the Social Compliance Program section for further

detail on audit requirements).

We have provided an Indigo Vendor Hub - Vendor Guide document in the Help section of the

portal that provides detailed instructions on how to complete the registration on the portal.

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Please forward any additional inquiries regarding our onboarding requirements to

[email protected]

1.1. INDIGO VENDOR AGREEMENT

The Vendor Agreement sets forth the standard terms and conditions applicable to the purchase

of products ordered by Indigo from vendor from time to time. Please refer to Indigo’s Vendor

Agreement to review in full detail.

The Vendor Agreement is a digital, click through agreement that is found at the start of the

registration process.

1.2. CERTIFICATE OF INSURANCE

1.2.1. INSURANCE COVERAGE REQUIREMENTS

Indigo requires vendors to have and maintain comprehensive general liability insurance

coverage, at vendors cost, that meet the following requirements:

a. Insurance Coverage. Comprehensive commercial general liability insurance with minimum

limits of coverage of not less than the amount set out in the Vendor Insurance Matrix (see

Appendix) per occurrence for bodily injury and property damage which must include the

following coverages: personal injury liability, bodily injury liability, advertising injury liability,

products and completed operations liability, blanket contractual liability (including liability

for damage to or losses relating to performance by Vendor of its obligations to Indigo), and

property damage liability (including liability for damage to or losses relating to an Indigo

location and any Indigo or other third party chattels, property, merchandise, trade fixtures,

or monies), and business interruption relating to Indigo’s operations.

b. Occurrence Basis. All coverage required by Indigo must be written on an occurrence basis.

Claims-made policies are not acceptable.

c. Additional Insured. Vendor’s insurance must designate Indigo Books & Music Inc. as an

Additional (or Joint) insured, including with respect to third party claims or actions brought

directly against Indigo or against Indigo and Vendor as co-defendants.

d. Currency: Vendor insurance may be provided in CAD or the vendor's home currency,

provided the respective coverage is the equivalent of the total CAD amount that is

required.

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e. Severability of Interests; Subrogation. Vendor’s coverage must provide for a severability of

interests between Indigo and Vendor, and all policies of insurance shall contain an

endorsement waiving all rights of subrogation against Indigo.

f. Supplier Insurance is Primary. Vendor’s insurance will be primary and will be required to

respond to and pay prior to any other available coverage of Indigo.

g. Self-Insurance. Indigo does not allow Vendors to self-insure their coverage requirements,

without Indigo’s prior written consent.

h. Cancellation. Indigo requires and expects that either Vendor or its insurer/broker will

provide Indigo with at least thirty (30) days advance written notice of any material change

or cancellation of the applicable policies.

i. Certificate of Insurance. Vendors must provide a valid certificate of insurance that:

• Clearly specifies the required coverage(s) (type(s) & amount(s));

• List Indigo as an additional insured;

• Describes Vendor’s business and/or the products being supplied to Indigo;

• Includes Vendor’s address; and

• References Indigo’s address:

Indigo Books & Music Inc.

620 King Street West, Suite 400

Toronto, Ontario

M5V 1M6

Certificates of Insurance must be renewed annually, and an uploaded on the Indigo

Vendor Hub.

1.2.2. INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS BY PRODUCT CATEGORY

Indigo requires vendors to maintain the required liability insurance coverage by product

category. The coverage requirements are categorized by $1M, $2M, $5M and $10M

insurance limit amounts. Please refer to the Vendor Insurance Matrix in the Appendix section

for a complete/detailed product category list to understand your respective insurance

requirements.

Please note that additional liability insurance coverage limits may be required for

new/specialty products and new/special product categories at any given time. These will be

added to the respective limit category and communicated to the respective vendors as

required.

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1.3. SOCIAL COMPLIANCE PROGRAM

1.3.1. SOCIAL COMPLIANCE POLICY STATEMENT

Our Code of Conduct is the foundation of our social compliance program and will serve as

a guide to achieving social and environmental compliance both within our company and in

our supply chain. While we recognize that laws and standards may differ from one region of

the world to another, we believe that our Code of Conduct outlines a set of fundamental

principles for good corporate citizenship that our business partners should share and

implement.

The social compliance program will direct business partners towards greater compliance

with local and international legal requirements and help them maintain good standing for

continued business with Indigo. Business partners who do not continually meet our standards

or complete corrective actions and steps for long-term remediation will not be considered a

business partner of choice and are at jeopardy to the discontinuation of conducting

business with Indigo.

1.3.2. VENDOR CODE OF CONDUCT

Indigo Books & Music Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “Indigo”) is committed to doing

business in a legal, ethical, socially responsible, and sustainable manner. In turn, Indigo

expects its vendors to embrace this commitment to integrity by complying with the

standards detailed in this Vendor Code of Conduct (the “Code”) and communicating these

standards to their workers and suppliers. We insist that our Vendors and their suppliers uphold

the highest ethical standards in their workplace, business practices, conduct and policies. In

addition to adhering to this Code, Vendors must always comply and stay updated with local

laws and regulations in each of the countries in which they do business. Where there is a

differing standard between this Code and the local legal requirements, Vendors must

comply with the higher standard.

This Code is based on the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International

Labor Organization Conventions and Recommendations and other internationally accepted

standards.

(Please refer to the Indigo Code of conduct section at the beginning of this document)

1.3.3. SOCIAL COMPLIANCE AUDIT

Vendors manufacturing Indigo Private Label product are required to produce a valid social

compliance audit that demonstrates the factory’s adherence to Indigo’s Social Compliance

Program and Vendor Code of Conduct. Indigo may also request a social compliance audit by

National Brand vendors, as needed. The vendor will be responsible for the cost of any audits or

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any other associated activity needed to implement corrective actions to remediate failures.

Factories, at a minimum, must undergo an annual social compliance audit.

Use of external accredited audit firm is required to provide an assurance of objectivity. External

Audit Firms should be part of the Association of Professional Social Compliance Auditors (APSCA)

members. The auditor must be registered with APSCA.

Accepted Audits

• OMEGA Compliance Supplier AuditICTI Ethical Toy Program Certification (ICTI CARE)

• BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative) Audit

• Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA)

• Bureau Veritas Audit (BV)

• Intertek Audit

• SGS Audit

Corrective Action

We embrace the principle of continuous improvement. We believe that willingness to improve is

the most important requirement. If issues arise during the assessment, Indigo will expect its

Vendors to remediate them in accordance with the jointly agreed upon corrective action plan

(CAPs) and corresponding timeframes.

We want to partner only with those factories that are willing and able to continuously improve

conditions for their workers. Serious violations of Indigo’s Code of Conduct shall result in the

termination of the business relationship.

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SECTION 2 - EDI EXPECTATIONS & ONBOARDING

2.1. INTRODUCTION

This is intended to set the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) expectations Indigo Books & Music

Inc. has of you as a trading partner. Please ensure that you review all sections and share this with

anyone in your company that may need this information.

Vendors must provide Indigo with at least five (5) business days advance written notice of all

Vendor system changes and modifications that could have an adverse effect on Vendor-Indigo

communications of Orders, including Vendor’s EDI connectivity. Vendors will be deemed to

have received any Indigo communications if Vendor fails to provide the required notice of a

system change.

2.2. E-COMMERCE STANDARDS

Indigo expects that all vendors will transact via EDI from the initial onset of our commercial

relationship. There are significant productivity and process visibility gains that are realized

through the use of EDI. Exemptions to this requirement may be granted by Vendor Compliance

based on the following criteria:

• Timing of initial order: temporary exemption (applicable to initial PO only; given EDI

onboarding has been initiated and is in progress)

• Anticipated size of ongoing relationship expected to be less than $75K/year of annual

purchases: permanent exemption

Please note that the cost of EDI non-compliance is $150 per non-EDI Purchase Order.

2.3. BENEFITS OF EDI

• Enhanced order visibility from PO to Invoice

• Accelerated time to market

• Faster order to cash cycle

• Improved data integrity & inventory management (reduce errors)

• Increased automation/eliminate manual processes

• Unlock Drop Ship capability

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v 8.0 November 2021

2.4. EDI TRANSACTION SET

Indigo believes that the ability to conduct business electronically on these and future

documents is critical to operating effectively with your firm. The documents currently required

are:

• 850 Purchase Order (PO)

• 855 Purchase Order Acknowledgment (POA)

• 856 Advance Ship Notice (ASN)

• 860 Purchase Order Change (POC)

• 810 Invoice

• 846 Inventory Inquiry (for Drop Ship vendors only)

• 997 Functional Acknowledgement

• GS1-128 Label

2.5. INDIGO’S EDI SERVICE PROVIDER

Indigo has partnered with InterTrade to manage the transition of our vendors to EDI with Indigo

Books & Music. Vendors can access program information including EDI specifications on

InterTrade’s Indigo EDI vendor portal.

To access the portal as a generic user, and view Indigo’s specifications, please go to:

https://InterTrade.com/Indigo/

For GM EDI specs, please go to “Indigo Books & Music Inc. - General Merchandising”

2.6. EDI ONBOARDING WITH INDIGO

As part of your onboarding with Indigo, a representative from InterTrade will contact you to

initiate the EDI onboarding process. Vendors can choose one of the following EDI fulfilment

solutions:

• Integrated EDI solution (to connect via 3

party provider or in-house EDI); this will require

testing and certification with InterTrade; to register for EDI certification, select “EDI Testing

and Certification”, fill in information and submit.

• InterTrade’s WebEDI solution (Indigo’s preferred web EDI solution for trading partners); this

is a cloud-based option available to vendors with no existing EDI solution; to register for

WEB EDI, select “Register for Web EDI”, fill in information and submit.

Please ensure you identify your preferred solution to Indigo’s EDI Team at EDIS[email protected]

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2.7. EDI ENABLED VENDORS – TESTING & CERTIFICATION WITH INTERTRADE

As an existing vendor transacting via EDI with Indigo Books & Music Inc., you will be expected to

interact with InterTrade as existing EDI documents are changed and/or new EDI documents

implemented. You will be notified of any such developments and InterTrade will work directly

with your organization to Test & Certify the new documents as required.

If you are currently using a third-party EDI provider, you are not required to change to InterTrade

services; however, your provider will be required to Test & Certify through InterTrade on new

Indigo Books & Music Inc. documents.

If you are migrating to a new EDI service provider, please advise [email protected] and

[email protected] prior to making this change, with sufficient advanced notice. It is

important to consider whether there are open orders residing with your current EDI service

provider; you will need to ensure that return document flow for any such open orders is

managed without interruption by your new EDI service provider. This process can take 2-3 weeks

to be executed properly.

2.8. EDI TRANSMISSIONS

EDI transactions will flow daily as follows: (note: these are based on hours of operation)

EDI

Transaction

Data

Direction

Frequency

EDI 850

Purchase Order

From

InterTrade

Daily, as required

EDI 855

Purchase Order

Acknowledgement

Intertrade

Within 1-2 business day of receiving

the 850 PO (excluding weekends &

holidays)

EDI 860

(not

required for

Drop Ship)

Purchase Order Change

(POC)

From

InterTrade

Daily, as required

EDI 856

ASN

To Intertrade

Daily, immediately

following shipment of an order

EDI 810

Invoice

To Intertrade

Along with ASN

EDI 997

Functional

Acknowledgment

Bi-directional

Immediately sent by the respective

recipient system following each EDI

document transmission

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v 8.0 November 2021

2.9. GS1-128 LABEL

GS1-128 label format is available through InterTrade. Alternatively, an approved example of a

GS1-128 label can be found in the Label Guidelines section of this Manual.

A GS1-128 Barcode label must be applied to each carton and/or pallet shipped (based on

shipping method); linking the individual carton/pallet to the associated ASN Item/Qty detail, as

set forth in the Label Guideline section of this Guide.

Failure to meet Indigo’s GS1-128 Label guideline requirements will cause your shipment to be

quarantined within Indigo’s Distribution Centres or Stores. A compliance chargeback will also be

applied to any violation of this guideline (please refer to Vendor Compliance Program section

for further detail).

2.10. VENDOR EDI CONTACTS

It is important for vendors to maintain/update their respective EDI contacts as both Indigo and

InterTrade use these contacts for notification of any EDI document failures, issues,

downtime/maintenance notifications or changes to Indigo’s EDI requirements, program, etc… If

the EDI contact person for your company changes, please send the details regarding this new

contact to both support@intertrade.com and EDISupport@indigo.ca immediately.

2.11. INDIGO EDI CONTACTS

INTERTRADE (EDI SERVICE PROVIDER)

• For immediate assistance, please contact:

InterTrade Customer Support

1-800-873-7803

(8:30am – 8:00pm EST, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays)

For non-urgent assistance, please send an email to the following address with your

name, your company name, and a detailed description of the issue:

[email protected]

INDIGO EDI SUPPORT

• Indigo EDI Support Team

EDISupport@indigo.ca

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v 8.0 November 2021

SECTION 3 - ARTICLE SET-UP

ARTICLE SET-UP: PIM (PRODUCT INFORMATION MANAGEMENT)

Where required, some IPL vendors, as identified by Indigo, may be required to manage their

article master data creation and changes. To assist them with this task, Indigo has provided a

web-based application called !ndigo PIM (“PIM”) to manage article master data creation and

changes for our online and retail sales channels. It is our expectation that vendors will submit ALL

article master data through our PIM system. We realize that this application will be new for your

organization, and so, we advise you to review the respective training materials that will be

provided for you, and to direct any respective questions to PIM@indigo.ca

!ndigo PIM provides the ability to load and maintain all aspects of article data 24 hours a day

through a standardized interface that contains workflows to streamline and simplify all aspects

of Indigo’s article loading process.

PIM allows you to:

• Create new articles by providing all mandatory article attributes (as identified in the

training documents and PIM system);

• Upload Single Article Data or Bulk Article Data (using Excel based templates);

• Upload multiple images to enhance your item;

• View the status of an article;

• Search for and modify existing articles and images;

• Track details of all the modifications that have been made to your articles.

Compatible Browsers:

Browser

Supported Versions

Certified versions

Google Chrome

Latest version of Chrome*

78.0.3904.70

Mozilla Firefox

Latest version of Firefox*

70.0

Safari on Mac

Latest version of Safari*

12.1

Notes:

• *As long as there is no breaking change in the browser engine.

• #Google Chrome version has enhanced security features and due to which certain file

types such as .xlsm and .json when downloaded, display a warning message. In order to

consume the file, warning message must be ignored.

• Also note, for the best view of web elements in the application, a minimum screen

resolution of 1024*768 is required.

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v 8.0 November 2021

3.1. BENEFITS OF PIM:

• Enhances product data management, workflow and accuracy;

• Enriches product descriptions (attributes, categories, content, images, media, etc…)

• Improves customer experience by providing relevant and detailed product information;

• Reduces operational and supply chain costs and risks due to poor product data;

• Improves system integration;

• Increases speed of transactional processes, from purchase order to goods receipt,

through to the sale of the product.

3.2. RIVERSAND PIM VENDOR REGISTRATION:

Once you have been assigned a vendor number by Indigo, the following will occur:

• An Indigo PIM account will be created by Indigo’s Master Data team;

• Vendors will receive an e-mail notification with instructions for login and password

creation.

• Note: login USER NAME will be the e-mail address submitted by the vendor to be set-up

as the data contact for PIM (as indicated on Indigo’s Vendor Registration Form).

• Vendors will also be sent training information/access and materials, outlining the PIM

article creation and maintenance process.

• Please note: PIM is for article submission only. Category Managers must approve your

articles and images for Indigo usage.

If you have any questions, please contact PIM@indigo.ca and a member of Indigo’s Master

Data team will be in contact within 1 business day. We request that you do not forward

questions regarding PIM functionality to Indigo merchants.

3.3. PRODUCT DATA QUALITY:

Key documents:

1. Training Documents: these documents include steps on how to create and manage

articles/display units in PIM.

Link: please access these at Learning Centre/PIM Training & Documents on the

Compliance Portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com)

2. Data Dictionary: please refer to this document for a list of article attributes:

Link: please access these at Learning Centre/PIM Training & Documents on the

Compliance Portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com)

3. Data Entry Guide: please refer to this document for instruction on how to effectively enter

article data:

Link: please access these at Learning Centre/PIM Training & Documents on the

Compliance Portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com)

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4. Indigo Product Style Guide: please refer to this document for more information on

product image guidelines and product copy guidelines:

Link: please access these at Learning Centre/PIM Training & Documents on our

Compliance Portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com)

5. Writing Guide for French Products: please refer to this document for guidelines on use of

proper French language for product names and descriptions (required for all online and

OMNI channel SKUs)

Link: please access these at Learning Centre/PIM Training & Documents on the

Compliance Portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com)

3.4. FRENCH TRANSLATION

For vendors who are required to manage their article master data creation, they are expected

to provide complete and quality French descriptions for all articles a minimum of 10 business

days before the expected in-DC date (i.e. PO delivery date).

For vendors requiring a French translation resource, please reach out to either of Indigo’s

preferred partners (3rd party translation service provider):

TRANSPERFECT:

Website: www.transperfect.com

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 416-703-0050

TRSB:

www.trsb.com

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (514) 844-4682

To access TRSB’s customized services for Indigo vendors, please submit your translation

request via the designated portal https://Indigo.TRSB.com/ (select country and create

your account by clicking on sign-up; then enter registration code: 552021)

Please contact this partner directly for translation services and mention that you are an Indigo

vendor. Please note: translation service costs are the vendor’s responsibility.

Alternatively, if vendors are unable to provide French content, Indigo will complete the

translation for the respective vendors and will charge the total fee of the translation service

(charged by the 3

party translation service provider) in addition to the Missing Item Description

(French) chargeback fee (per UPC) to the respective vendor (see data compliance table

below).

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v 8.0 November 2021

French language requirements:

To further clarify what we consider proper French and to comply with our naming structure,

please see the Scoring Table and the Writing Guide for French Products.

SCORING TABLE

Here is the scoring table that we would also like to send to the vendor (you will also find that

table in the auditing template, in the second tab).

Great

Text flows very well

No errors (spelling, grammar, syntax, translation,

language)

Idiomatic French

Good

Non-localized French

Some sentences could be formulated better

Readability is good

Fair

Spelling: Fewer than 3 typos or error

English terms more accepted (cool, fun, etc.)

Punctuation errors

Bad

Machine translated or similar quality (unreadable)

Translation errors (incorrect transfer)

Spelling errors

Syntax errors

Grammar errors

Language errors (Anglicism, wrong term)

No French

No FR whatsoever

FR title and EN description

EN title and FR description

3.5. KEY LINKS & CONTACTS

o PIM Training & Documents: Please refer to Learning Centre/PIM Training & Documents on the

Compliance Portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com)

o Contact info:

• For PIM related inquiries: PIM@indigo.ca

3.6. PRODUCT DATA COMPLIANCE

For vendors who are required to manage their article master data creation, the below list of

Product Data compliance rules and respective chargeback amounts may apply:

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v 8.0 November 2021

Product Data Compliance

Rule

Charge Amount

Consumer Package Dimension

Error

$50 per UPC, per

violation

Consumer Package Weight Error

$50 per UPC, per

violation

Master Case Dimension Error

$50 per UPC, per

violation

Master Case Weight Error

$50 per UPC, per

violation

Missing Product Image

$100 per UPC

Poor Image Quality

Images must meet aspect ratio and

resolution requirements/standards

$50 per UPC, per poor

aspect ratio or

resolution

Missing Product Description -

English

$50 per UPC

Missing Product Description -

French

$50 per UPC

Insufficient Product Description

Length - English

Product description (English) must meet

minimum 25-word count requirement

$50 per UPC

Insufficient Product Description

Length - French

Product description (French) must meet

minimum 25-word count requirement

$50 per UPC

Inaccurate/Incorrect

Product Description - French

Product description (French) must be

accurate/correct as per Indigo’s French

standard requirements

$50 per UPC

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v 8.0 November 2021

UPC (UNIVERSAL PRODUCT CODE) & PRICE STICKER LABELS

UNIVERSAL PRODUCT CODE (“UPC”)

• Vendors are responsible for ensuring that the unique scannable UPC or EAN

(International Article Number; formerly European Article Number) is provided on the unit.

UPCs and EANs must meet the specifications defined by the Electronic Commerce

Council of Canada.

• If possible, UPC numbers should never be reassigned; however, in the event one must be

reassigned, Indigo requires that the number not be in use for a minimum of 36 months

prior to reuse or reassignment to allow the UPC to pass through the retail product cycle.

PRICE STICKER LABELLING

• Vendors are responsible for pre-ticketing all units with Canadian retail price and

scannable UPC (if not printed directly on the product or package).

• Vendors are responsible for ordering price stickers in a timely manner that will not delay

shipment. Unless otherwise instructed by the responsible Indigo Product Manager or

Indigo buyer, price sticker costs must be included in the cost of goods.

• Price stickers should be ordered from Indigo’s designated vendor, Avery Dennison.

• Stickers should be placed on the back of the purple Indigo hangtag, or at the bottom or

on the back of the packaging. Any price sticker placement questions should be directed

to the responsible Indigo buyer.

• Please note that price stickers cannot cover any warning labels or care instructions.

• For further detail, please contact your respective Product Manager in the New York

office.

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SECTION 4 – PURCHASE ORDERS & INVOICE PAYMENTS

PURCHASE ORDER PROCESS

4.1. PURCHASE ORDER DETAIL

Indigo’s Purchase Order will specify the following:

• Indigo Books & Music Inc. Purchase Order number. This is a 10-digit number beginning

with the numbers 45 (i.e. 4512345678)

• Purchase Order Creation Date

• ‘Ship To’ and ‘Bill To’ locations (including Building #, Store #, SAN#)

• 13-digit case UPC code (being ordered)

• Item Description

• Vendor Manufacturing Part Number (if provided to Indigo)

• Listing Pack Size for outer and inner cartons (if applicable)

• Quantity (being ordered)

• Retail price in Canadian currency (for price sticker)

• Unit Costs in currency of record for vendor

• Delivery Date at the Ship To address

• Carrier Hand-over Date (CHO Date) (if applicable)

• INCO and FOB terms

• Payment Terms

• Method of Transportation

The following are the SAN numbers per Distribution Centre already in operational use, as follows:

DC Location

SAN#

Order Type

Retail DC (956)

1186213

Regular (Initial Buy & Replenishment)

Online DC (970)

1187414

Regular (Initial Buy & Replenishment)

Calgary DC (988)

8100608

Regular (Initial Buy & Replenishment)

If there are questions regarding the meaning of these data elements, please contact

vendorcompliance@indigo.ca

4.2. PURCHASE ORDER DATES

For Collect orders, Vendor must hand over the items on the Purchase Order in full on the

CHO Date (Carrier Handover Date) indicated on the Purchase Order.

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4.3. PURCHASE ORDER LINE ITEMS

• Product ordered as part of one Purchase Order cannot be received against a different

Purchase Order.

• Indigo will place a Purchase Order for the UPC on the product; vendor

generated/internal SKU numbers will not be used on Indigo Purchase Orders when

placing an order.

• Vendor should not ship “substitute” or “replacement” UPCs. In this case, the current PO

line must be cancelled via Purchase Order Acknowledgment or by using the Purchase

Order Change Form and a new PO line must be created for the new UPC. This must be

confirmed/approved by the respective Indigo buyer.

• The Purchase Order quantity will be in “eaches” of product/UPC ordered (corresponding

to individual units or assortment units).

• For assortments, Indigo will always order with the parent UPC.

• Indigo does not currently support the use of GTIN 14 product identifiers.

• It is imperative the UPC on the Purchase Order is what is shipped and is on the ASN. If the

UPC is incorrect, please contact the Category Manager to have this corrected

immediately upon receipt of the order. An incorrect UPC can only be addressed by

cancelling the line item on the Purchase Order (see Purchase Order Change Process

section below).

4.4. PURCHASE ORDER FREIGHT/INCO TERMS

Each Indigo Purchase Order specifies one of the following freight (INCO) terms:

• EXW – (ExWorks): Vendor is responsible for having order ready and available in full to be

handed over (collected) at the vendor premises (factory, warehouse, plant, …) within

the agreed upon Ship Window (based on CHO date). Buyer pays all transportation costs

and bears the risks for transporting the goods to its final destination (DC, Store).

• FOB – (Free on Board): Vendor is responsible for having order ready and available in full

to be handed over within the agreed upon Ship Window (based on CHO date) at the

agreed upon shipping location (FOB point), as specified on the Purchase Order.

• FCA – (Free Carrier): Vendor is responsible for delivering order in full, cleared for export, to

the Buyer’s designated freight forwarder (carrier), at an agreed upon, named location,

within agreed upon Ship Window. Vendor must load shipment onto the Buyer’s carrier. A

receipt document from carrier to exporting vendor confirms transfer of shipment.

• CIF – (Cost, Insurance and Freight): This applies to maritime transport only. Vendor is

responsible for paying the freight, insurance and other costs to deliver order in full to the

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v 8.0 November 2021

port of destination within agreed upon Ship Window. Once the shipment if loaded on the

vessel, risk is transferred to the Buyer.

4.5. PURCHASE ORDER ACKNOWLEDGEMENT (POA)

For non-EDI vendors, the terms and details of the Purchase Order must be confirmed as

follows:

• Vendor must review all terms of the Purchase Order and communicate any

discrepancies to the respective Indigo contact within three (3) business days (i.e.

incorrect UPC, cost, pack size, quantity, CHO date, INCO terms, etc…)

• If an adjustment is required, vendor must communicate this via e-mail correspondence

acknowledging the change(s), from the Indigo buyer, before filling/shipping the order.

• If vendor does not communicate any discrepancies/required changes within the allotted

3 business days, the terms and order information on the original Purchase Order govern.

A compliance chargeback may be applied to late and/or incomplete orders.

• Vendor must immediately notify the respective Indigo buyer of any changes to Purchase

Order terms that may arise at a later date, including any foreseen late shipments.

For vendors transacting via EDI, the POA is an electronic document (EDI 855) that is used to

confirm the terms and details of the Purchase Order:

• We require the POA to be sent within three (3) business days of receiving the Purchase

Order.

• If your POA is rejected due to an error, the POA must be retransmitted once the error has

been corrected.

• If we do not receive a valid POA, we will base delivery performance (on-time delivery, fill

rate, etc…) on our original Purchase Order terms. A compliance chargeback may be

applied to late and/or incomplete orders.

4.6. PURCHASE ORDER CHANGE PROCESS

For any required changes to a Purchase Order after the POA has been sent, or for vendors

who are unable to send a POA but require changes to the PO, the following PO Change

process must be followed:

• Vendor must review all terms of the Purchase Order and communicate any required

changes using the Purchase Order Change Request Form (i.e. UPC, cost, case pack size,

quantity, Delivery or CHO date, INCO terms, etc…).

• If an adjustment is required, vendor must await the receipt of a Purchase Order Change

Notice (EDI 860), or an e-mail correspondence acknowledging the change(s), from the

Indigo buyer, before filling/shipping the order.

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v 8.0 November 2021

• If vendor does not communicate any discrepancies/required changes to a Purchase

Order up to 5 business days ahead of Delivery/CHO due date, the terms and order

information on the original Purchase Order govern.

• Vendor must immediately notify the respective Indigo Buyer of any changes to Purchase

Order terms that may arise at any time using this PO Change process, including any

foreseen late shipments and/or quantity discrepancies.

INVOICE PAYMENT & BILLINGS

4.7. INVOICES

EDI vendors: Invoices are received via the 810 EDI document only. Any invoices sent via email by

EDI vendors will not be processed for payment. .

Non-EDI vendors are the only exception; these vendors may send paper invoices, or preferably,

a PDF version of the invoice by e-mail to the respective A/P contact at Indigo.

4.7.1. INVOICE PAYMENT

Indigo has two payment cycles per month: mid-month and month-end. The below examples

illustrate when an invoice gets paid based on the terms of payment:

• Any invoice which is due for payment from the first of the month to the 15th will be paid

on the 15th of the month;

• Any invoice which is due from the 16th of the month will be paid on the month end

cheque run.

• Please note that invoices are aged from the date of the invoice, and are due for

payment based on the terms of payment.

Important notes:

o Any discrepancy between the vendor invoice and our receiving data may result in a

payment different than the value shown on the invoice (i.e. short shipment will result in

short payment).

o Where an initial Purchase Order is cancelled by Indigo and a new Purchase Order No. is

provided, the invoice must quote the new Purchase Order No.

4.8. BILLING FOR COMPLIANCE CHARGEBACKS

Where your organization has incurred compliance chargebacks as a result of non-compliant

shipments, all amounts owing will be billed through the Indigo Debit Note Process.

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4.8.1. INVOICE & BILLING INQUIRIES:

All inquiries regarding invoice and payment status should be directed to Indigo’s Accounts

Payable Department (Please refer to Contact Information section)

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SECTION 5 – SAMPLE PROCESS & PRODUCT QUALITY

SAMPLE PROCESS

5.1. SAMPLE TAG

All samples must be marked with a sample tag as per below. Please note the colour code

indicator based on Development, TOP, Media/Photo, and Pre-Production samples.

]

a. Development Sample (colour = blue)

PD SEASON# Description

Color

Country

Vendor

Date

Price

MOQ

Material

Comment

Indigo receipt

Date

Indigo Books & Music Inc. Sample

Development

sample

b. TOP Sample (colour = orange)

PD SEASON# Description

Color

Country

Vendor

Date

Price

Actual units

ordered

Material

Comment

CHO Date

Approval Date

Approval

Signature

Indigo Books & Music Inc. Sample

TOP SAMPLE

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v 8.0 November 2021

c. Media/Photo Sample (colour = yellow)

PD SEASON # Description

Color

Country

Vendor

Date

Price

MOQ

Material

Comment

Indigo receipt

Date

Indigo Books & Music Inc. Sample

MEDIA SAMPLE

d. Pre-Production Sample (colour = green)

PD SEASON# Description

Color

Country

Vendor

Date

Price

Actual units

ordered

Material

Comment

CHO Date

Approval

Signature

Indigo Books & Music Inc. Sample

PP SAMPLE

5.2. PRODUCT WORKSHEET (PWS)

In order to accurately assess freight costs, all vendors must fill in a product worksheet (PWS) when

quoting pricing. All fields listed on the Product Worksheet form must be filled out at the time of

price quote. (Please refer to the sample Product Worksheet excerpt below). Upon confirmation

from the Sourcing Team, the final PWS will be required to be uploaded to the PIM system.

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v 8.0 November 2021

Product Worksheet (PWS) excerpt

5.3. TOP (TOP-OF-PRODUCTION) SAMPLES

Indigo must receive at least one TOP sample of each item on order. All TOPs must have final

brand packaging and price/UPC stickers. Protective packaging is not necessary on TOP

samples. Product cannot ship without a TOP sample approval by Indigo’s Sourcing

Manager/Team.

At least one TOP sample must be sent to Indigo home office:

• Indigo Home Office

Attn: Sourcing Manager

620 King Street West

Suite 400

Toronto ON, M5V 1M6

*Please note that alternative protocols may become in effect when circumstances deem

necessary*

5.4. DELAYED SAMPLES DUE TO CUSTOMS ISSUES

For any product that is delayed due to customs issues, please contact your respective Indigo

Sourcing Manager/Team contact.

5.5. SAMPLE COURIER PROTOCOL & PROCESS

• All design, production and market samples are to ship in separate Master Cartons to:

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v 8.0 November 2021

Indigo

620 King Street West, Suite 400

Toronto, ON

Canada M5V 1M6

Tel# (416) 364-4499

• Package Confirmation Emails Required:

o E-mail subject heading should include the season/year and the courier tracking

number. The body of the e-mail should list the sent items. If the package contains

items that cross over different seasons, a separate e-mail must be sent with the

subject heading showing the different season and same courier tracking number.

o Example: FA20 PP Samples sending 1/2/2021 via FedEx 7793 6163 4924

o Kiyomi Ruvalcaba is to be copied on all DVS/PP sample package confirmation

emails

• Design samples (DVS):

o All design samples are to be sent to the attention of Kiyomi Ruvalcaba (see attached

design shipping label)

o Each design prototype in the master carton must be individually labeled with the

name of the recipient/category designer, Category (i.e. JOTT, Home, ROHO,

Journals, Wellness) and Season. (Please see following Indigo Packages guidelines.

• Designers:

o ROHO Sleepwear/Fashion Accessories: Lorrain Chow (lcho[email protected])

o Wellness/ Fitness Bags/ Self Care & Beauty: Lorrain Chow (lchow@indigo.ca)

o Hard Home/JOTT, Coffee + Tea: Ange-line Tetrault ([email protected])

o Soft Home/JOTT: Zayd Khan (zk[email protected])

o Bedding/Bath: Sarah Lowry ([email protected])

o Desktop/Wellness (Yoga/Fitness): Tatum Dietrich ([email protected])

o Journals: Ann Kim (a.kim@indigo.ca)

o Expression Mugs: Maura Garcia (mgarcia@indigo.ca)

• Sourcing and Production Samples:

o All Pre-production (PP) are to be sent to the attention of Kiyomi Ruvalcaba

o All Top-of-Production (TOP) samples are to be sent to the attention of the respective

sourcing manager

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v 8.0 November 2021

o Each design prototype in the master carton must be individually labeled with the

name of the recipient/category designer, Category (i.e. JOTT, Home, ROHO,

Journals) and Season. (Please see Attached Indigo Packages guidelines.)

• Sourcing Production Managers

o ROHO & Wellness – Arlene Ing (aing@indigo.ca)

o JOTT & Home – Kate Chan ([email protected])

o Journals, Desktop, Kids - Arlene Ing (aing@indigo.ca)

• Packaging Samples:

o There is no change to process. Please continue to send to the attention of Ann Kim.

• Media Samples:

o There is no change to process. Please continue to send to merchants, and ensure

that all Media samples are sent with the correct packaging. Media samples should

reflect the approved PP sample and not sent before PP has been approved.

5.6. SAMPLE APPROVAL PROCESS

• Design Team:

o Owns the development and all communication of DVS/ design samples until the

Tech pack is completed and item purchased and moved to production stage.

o Owns receipt and management of Preproduction (PP) samples.

• Design:

o Owns the final sign-off of Preproduction samples. Design will send PP approval

comments (cc sourcing) to vendors.

o Sourcing is responsible for troubleshooting any production issues.

• Sourcing:

o Owns TOP sign-off and communication to vendor. If the TOP has variances from

the PP sample approved, Merchant decides whether to accept the item or not,

and looping in the Design team.

• Design Packaging:

o All Design Packaging questions should be addressed to: Ann Kim

([email protected]) with a copy to the respective sourcing manager

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5.7. SAMPLE PACKAGING & LABELLING GUIDELINES

Master Carton Label for Design (DVS & PP samples)

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Master Carton Label for Sourcing (TOP samples)

Inner Carton Label

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SECTION 6 - PRODUCT COMPLIANCE AND QUALITY

6.1. PRODUCT QUALITY POLICIES

6.1.1. PRODUCT COMPLIANCE POLICY

At Indigo Books & Music Inc. we provide our customers with safe and high integrity products that

complies with applicable laws, regulations, and industry standards of the countries we operate

in. This includes all applicable and required government registrations, licenses, testing and

certifications. Upon request, all vendors are expected to have supporting documentation that

confirms products being supplied have met all applicable regulations and standards of the

countries where we conduct business. Non-Compliance to applicable regulations may result in

the cancellation of purchase orders and/or products withdrawals and recalls.

6.1.2. PRIVATE LABEL POLICY

It is the expectation that all Indigo private label product shall meet regulatory requirements and

Indigo’s performance expectations, which will be outlined in Indigo’s QA protocol. Indigo

branded products are subjected to 3rd party audits, testing and inspection at the discretion of

Indigo’s product quality team.

6.1.3. PRODUCT INCIDENT MANAGEMENT

Consumer Product Safety is governed in Canada by the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act

(CCPSA) and in the U.S by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), with some

exclusion: Cosmetics, Foods, Drugs, Medical Devices and Natural Health Products. Vendors are

required to comply with the requirements of these acts, including participating with Indigo in

investigating Consumer Product Incidents relating to personal injury or property damaged.

If a recall or withdrawal is initiated by the vendor or is requested or required by any

governmental authority, vendors shall promptly advise Indigo of such recall or withdrawal.

Vendor shall notify Indigo’s Category Manager and Quality Assurance, within two (2) calendar

days of becoming aware of any possible non-compliance with product laws, or its notice of a

claim from a consumer (which, individually or in the aggregate, may reasonably be expected to

result in material liability to vendor and/or Indigo) that a product is defective or does not comply

with all product laws.

6.1.4. PRODUCT WITHDRAWAL OR RECALL

In the event of a regulatory recall or alert of a product safety risk, Indigo reserves the right to

issue a recall notice, cancel outstanding purchase orders and return all product for a full refund

and charge back the vendor any costs incurred to facilitate the recall/withdrawal.

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6.1.5. BILINGUAL PACKAGING AND LABELLING REQUIREMENTS

All Consumer Packaging and Labelling, whether is Indigo private label or national brand, must

be bilingual (English and French) and in compliance with Canada’s Consumer Packaging and

Labeling Act and Quebec’s Charter of French Language. All information on the product, on its

container or on its packaging, on a document (i.e. instruction manual) or object supplied with it

must be in French and English. No inscription in another language may be given greater

prominence than that in French.

6.2. PRODUCT TESTING PROCEDURES

Indigo private label Vvendors are fully responsible for all testing of production merchandise to

guarantee that products pass testing and meet the current Bureau Veritas testing protocol. the

product quality and safety of Indigo products, all vendors are required to provide:

• third-party test reports to demonstrate that the goods being supplied to Indigo meets all

applicable Canadian and U.S. requirements and performance requirements according

to Indigo’s test protocols, and

• pre-shipment inspection report showing that the goods pass inspection, before the

goods can be shipped to Indigo.

6.2.1. PRODUCT TESTING REQUEST

• Vendors shall arrange product testing directly with an accredited third-party service

provider once the QA test plans have been received from the product quality team.

o Testing shall be conducted according to the test plans and to the Indigo test

protocols assigned.

o Product specifications (where applicable) and mock-up artwork labels (if actual

packaging/labels are not available) shall be submitted along with the samples to

the lab for dimensions/claim validation.

• Test report must be submitted to and approved by Indigo QA before proceeding to next

steps.

• Vendors must allow for sufficient time for testing. If a product is not submitted with

sufficient time for testing and order is delayed, vendor is responsible for late charges.

NOTE: In-house test reports are not acceptable. Vendors may have product testing conducted

by any one of our nominated third-party labs – Bureau Veritas, Intertek or SGS, however Indigo’s

QA team must be copied on the test report to ensure timely approval.

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Claim Validation

For qualitative claims that cannot be evaluated at the lab where no analytical method is

available for evaluation (e.g. organic claims, source of fibers), vendors are required to provide

supportive documentation to Indigo QA for review and approval prior to PO issuance.

6.2.2. TEST PROTOCOLS

A set of test protocols has been developed exclusively for Indigo by Bureau Veritas (“BV”). All

protocols are posted on BV’s Docushare website and are made available to Vendors by

accessing the following link:

https://docushare.CPS.bureauveritas.com/docushare/DSWEB/Login

Username: vendor@indigo

Password: color0531

(Please note: Username and Password are case-sensitive, spaces should not be entered before

or after the text.)

If a protocol does not exist for a specific product type, please allow 3 (three) weeks lead time for

the protocol to be developed. Alternatively, Indigo may approve testing using a non-Indigo

protocol provided by BV.

6.2.3. TRANSIT TESTING (PACKAGE TESTING)

Vendors may have transit testing (cartons packed for shipping) conducted by an accredited

service provider using ISTA-1A standards or perform in-house testing to the same standards (refer

to the Appendix, Drop Test Requirements in the manual).

6.2.4. TEST INVOICES AND PAYMENTS

• Vendors are responsible for all testing charges.

• Vendor is responsible for all invoice, and for paying the service provider directly for the cost

of testing. A vendor contact should be indicated in the “Invoice Recipient” field of the Test

Request Form.

• FOB Pricing is to be inclusive of all testing charges.

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6.2.5. PRE-SHIPMENT INSPECTION

• Vendors shall arrange pre-shipment inspection directly with a nominated third-party

service provider only after receiving Indigo’s approval on test results and production is

100% complete.

• Inspection report must be submitted to and approved by Indigo QA prior to shipment.

Indigo uses General Inspection Level II AQL 2.5 Major; all finished goods must be 100%

produced and at least 80% packed prior to inspection, unless otherwise stated by Indigo.

• Vendors must allow for sufficient time to schedule for pre-shipment inspection and obtain

a “pass” grading. If the inspection/re-inspection cannot be completed in-time and the

order is delayed, vendor is responsible for late charges.

6.3. FOOD/GOURMET VENDORS - ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

6.3.1. INDIGO ALLERGEN CHECKLIST

The Indigo Allergen Checklist (see Appendix) must be completed by the manufacturing facility

and submitted to Indigo Quality Assurance (QA) prior to shipment of goods, for review against

final product artwork/label.

6.3.2. MARKETING SAMPLES

Indigo’s Food/Gourmet Category Managers will contact Food/Gourmet vendors regarding

marketing sample requirements.

6.3.3. PRODUCT CODES

• Indigo requires that each salable unit of food be identified with a code mark in the form of a

Best Before Date (“BBD”) on the label or container. Coding is mandatory to trace products

through the distribution chain and to facilitate recalls.

• An example of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (“CFIA”) Best Before Date format is

shown in the table below.

• The term ‘Best Before’ must be shown in English and French (Best before / Meilleur avant).

• The year must appear first, followed by the month, then the day. This format is used to avoid

confusion in date interpretation.

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v 8.0 November 2021

• The month must appear in both official languages by using specified bilingual Month

symbols, as shown below.

Shelf Life

Code Date Type Required

CFIA Format

All shelf lives,

including 90 days or

less

Use “Best Before Date”

NOT “Expiry Date”

Best before

08 JA 30

Meilleur avant

• If BBD codes are applied

by sticker, the

adhesiveness must be

validated to withstand

handling, to ensure

traceability of the code.

6.3.1. SHELF LIFE

Products arriving at

Indigo’s DCs and/or Store locations must have 80% of their shelf life (minimum 90 days) remaining

at time of receipt.

6.3.4. INDIGO QUALITY ASSURANCE SAMPLES FOR REVIEW

• Two final production samples from the manufacturing facility are required by Indigo QA for

QA Release prior to shipment of goods.

• Send samples to Indigo Home Office to the attention of “QA – Product Sample for QA

Release”

620 King St. West

Suite 400

Toronto ON, M5V 1M6

6.3.5. TEMPERATURE CONTROL

Chocolate confectionery temperature control in transit to DCs and/or Store locations is to be

arranged where required.

Month

Bilingual Month Symbols to be used in

Code

January:

February:

March:

April:

May:

June:

July:

August:

September:

October:

November:

December:

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v 8.0 November 2021

SECTION 7 - SUPPLY CHAIN EXECUTION & VENDOR COMPLIANCE

VENDOR PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM (VPM)

Indigo is committed to having a world class supply chain organization focused on delivering the

right product to the right place at the right time at the right cost without defect. To help

achieve this, Indigo’s Vendor Performance Management (VPM) program communicates our

supply chain performance guidelines to our vendors and measures their compliance against

those guidelines. This program is intended to initiate collaborative efforts between Indigo and its

vendor community to improve operational efficiencies, product quality, and the overall

customer experience.

THE PERFECT ORDER GUIDELINE

Indigo’s Perfect Order Guideline applies to all product purchased for resale by Indigo Books &

Music Inc. inbound to each of our DC and store locations. This guideline plays a key role in

ensuring that our vendors are delivering orders on-time, complete, with accurate

documentation, and in good condition, in support of our supply chain productivity goals.

The Perfect Order Guideline includes Indigo’s performance expectations for:

• On-Time Shipment/ASN

• Fill Rate (“complete” order)

• Accurate Shipment Documentation

• Shipment Quality (“in good condition”)

7.1. ON-TIME DELIVERY/ SHIPMENT/ BOOKING/ ASN DELIVERY (“ON TIME”)

7.1.1. ON-TIME SHIPMENT (OTS)

a. Applicable to: Vendors that have the following INCOTERMS*:

• EXW

• FOB

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v 8.0 November 2021

• FCA

• CIF

(* please refer to the INCOTERM table in our Shipping Guidelines for a summary of

Buyer/Seller responsibilities)

b. Guideline:

• Indigo expects Purchase Order shipments to be ready and available in full to be

handed over within the Ship Window.

• The Ship Window is defined as follows:

o For Ocean/Air (outside of North America): up to ten (10) business days

early, and three (3) business days late compared to the final

acknowledged/agreed to Purchase Order Carrier-Hand-Over Date (CHO

Date).

o For Land (inside of North America): up to three (3) business days early, and

three (3) business days late compared to the final acknowledged/agreed

to Purchase Order CHO Date.

• A shipment handed over outside the Ship Window will be considered as non-

compliant and will be subject to a Late/Early Shipment chargeback.

o Rescheduling CHO Date: a CHO Date revision request request must be submitted

by using the PO Change Form up to 5 business days ahead of the current PO

CHO Due Date; change requests may or may not be approved, at the discretion

of the Merchant/Buyer:

o If CHO Date revision is approved, OTS performance will be measured against the

revised CHO Date, referred to as the “final agreed to” CHO Date;

o If CHO Date revision is not approved, or if the PO Change Request is submitted

outside the permitted window indicated above, OTS performance will be

measured against the original CHO Date on the Purchase Order.

7.1.2. ON-TIME BOOKING

• A completed Freight Notification Form (please refer to Appendix Section) must be

sent to Indigo’s international Freight Forwarder & Customs Broker (“Carrier”) as

follows:

o Ocean shipment: min. 2 weeks in advance of the CHO date.

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v 8.0 November 2021

o Air shipment: min. 2 weeks in advance of the CHO date (outside of North

America)

o Truck shipment: min. 3 business days in advance of the CHO date (within North

America)

• It is recommended that vendors book as early as possible, but at a minimum based

on the deadlines indicated above.

• Upon receipt of the Freight Notification Form, Indigo’s 3PL Provider will provide

Routing Instructions to the vendor.

• Bookings made outside the above timelines will be subject to a Late Booking

chargeback.

7.1.3. ON-TIME DELIVERY (OTD) - TO DC (WHERE APPLICABLE)

a. Applicable only to: vendors that have the following INCOTERMS:

• DDP

• DAP

b. Guideline:

• Indigo expects Purchase Orders to be delivered on-time and in full to the correct DC

location (DC Delivery) or Store location (DSD - Direct Ship Delivery) within Delivery

Window.

• The Delivery Window is defined as up to three (3) business days early, and three (3)

business days late compared to final acknowledged/agreed to Purchase Order

Delivery Date.

• An order delivered outside the Delivery Window will be considered as non-compliant,

and will be subject to a Late/Early Delivery chargeback.

• Rescheduling Delivery Date: a Delivery Date revision request must be submitted by

using the PO Change Form up to 5 business days ahead of the current PO Delivery

Due Date; change requests may or may not be approved, at the discretion of the

Merchant/Buyer:

o If Delivery Date revision is approved, OTD performance will be measured

against the revised Delivery Date, referred to as the “final agreed to” Delivery

Date;

o If Delivery Date revision is not approved, OTD performance will be measured

against the original Delivery Date on the Purchase Order.

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v 8.0 November 2021

7.1.4. ON-TIME ASN (ADVANCE SHIPPING NOTICE)

The ASN is an electronic document (EDI 856) that is used to describe the actual contents of a

shipment.

• Indigo expects EDI vendors to send a valid EDI 856 (ASN) immediately after the

shipment departs from the vendor’s facility; this will allow time for remedial action to

be taken in the event of ASN failure.

• It is critical to ensure your ASN is loaded into our Warehouse Management System

prior to your shipment arriving at the DCs or Store locations, otherwise, it could result

in rejection or receiving delays.

• An ASN delivery is considered late and non-compliant if it is not received and

processed successfully before delivery of the physical shipment at the respective DC

or Store location(s). For Drop Ship orders, an ASN is considered late and non-

compliant if it is not sent 2 business days after PO issue/sent date.

• A compliance chargeback may be applied to late/missing/inaccurate ASNs.

7.2. FILL RATE - (“COMPLETE”)

• Indigo expects our Purchase Order Lines to be shipped/delivered complete, that is, 100%

filled, on the initial shipment; and for the overall PO to be shipped/delivered 100%

complete 60 days after the expected PO CHO/Delivery Date.

• A variance of +/- 5% of the Purchase Order line order quantity will be tolerated; however,

the following results will be considered as non-compliant:

o A shortage: shipped quantity variance is less than -5%

o An overage: shipped quantity variance is greater than +5%

o Wrong/Substitute product shipped

o If the item comes in various colors and sizes, there cannot be more than 5% in an

individual color or size.

• A Purchase Order line with a non-compliant Fill Rate may be subject to a Fill Rate

chargeback for short shipment, over shipment or PO not filled.

7.3. ACCURATE DOCUMENTATION (“ACCURATE”)

• Indigo expects all documentation & EDI transactions preceding, accompanying, and

succeeding an inbound shipment to be accurate and complete, matching exactly the

details of the respective Purchase Order(s), and ship-to location.

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v 8.0 November 2021

• Such documentation includes:

o Valid EDI 856 (ASN) (EDI vendors only)

o Bill of Lading

o Packing Slip

o Invoice

o Customs Documentation

• Any of the above documentation that is non-compliant with the requirements below

may be subject to the respective compliance chargeback.

7.3.1. ASN ACCURACY (EDI VENDORS ONLY)

• Indigo expects (EDI) vendors to send a timely, valid and accurate EDI 856 (ASN) whose

details exactly match what has been routed for shipment.

• An ASN is considered to be inaccurate and non-compliant if does not meet our EDI 856

specifications (specifically all mandatory segments/requirements). Please refer to Indigo's

856 EDI Specifications for more detail.

• An ASN is considered to be invalid and non-compliant if there is a:

o systemic error/failure

o receiving data error/failure

• If your ASN is rejected due to an error, the ASN can be retransmitted with the same ASN

number once the error has been corrected.

• An invalid or inaccurate ASN may be subject to an ASN Error chargeback.

7.3.2. BILL OF LADING ACCURACY

• Indigo expects all vendor shipments to be accompanied by an accurate Bill of

Lading whose details exactly match what has been routed for shipment.

• The Bill of Lading must include at a minimum:

o The full name and address of Shipper

o Name of Carrier

o Consignee:

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v 8.0 November 2021

Indigo Books & Music Inc.

*Correct Indigo DC/Store ship-to address*

o Accurate BOL No. (same as on respective ASN)

o Shipment Details:

o No. of pallets (if applicable)

o No. of cases/cartons

o Total Weight shipped

o Purchase Order No.(s)

o Ship Date

o Description of Items Shipped & QTY

o Wood packaging declaration

o Indication of products that require special handling or stowage.

o Indication of food products that require temperature control and/or put-

away within a given time.

• For EDI shipments, it is mandatory that the Bill of Lading # (BOL) associated with your

shipment be included in the ASN. Failure to provide the BOL # could lead to your

shipment being rejected at our Distribution Centre Appointment Desk.

• If the actual BOL # is not available at the time of the ASN creation, please do the

following:

o Enter Indigo’s Purchase Order No. beginning with “45” in the BOL # field for the ASN;

o Ensure that Indigo’s Purchase Order No. is noted clearly on the carrier’s shipping

documentation that will be presented to Indigo’s Distribution Centre Appointment

Desk. This will allow them to locate your ASN within Indigo’s warehouse management

system and provide the carrier a dock door to unload your shipment.

• A Bill of Lading is considered to be inaccurate and non-compliant if there is an error with/

or is missing any of the above required details.

• An inaccurate or missing BOL may be subject to the respective compliance

chargeback.

7.3.3. PACKING SLIP ACCURACY

• Indigo expects all vendor shipments to be accompanied by an accurate Packing

Slip whose details exactly match what has been routed for shipment.

• The Packing Slip must contain, at a minimum:

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v 8.0 November 2021

o Purchase Order No.(s)

o Date of Shipment

o Ship-to Location/Address (Destination)

o List of UPCs

o List of Product Descriptions

o Total units shipped by Description and total quantity back-ordered

o List of correct lot numbers (if applicable)

o For international shipments: Number of cartons per SKU/per PO at the

container level when shipping multiple containers under one MBL

• The Packing Slip should be easily identified on the outside of the shipment.

• A Packing Slip is considered to be inaccurate and non-compliant if it does not meet any

of the above requirements.

7.3.4. INVOICE ACCURACY

• Indigo expects EDI vendors to send a valid and accurate Invoice (EDI 810 document)

whose details match the respective Purchase Order details for the exact item(s) and

quantity(s) that have been shipped.

• Non-EDI vendors are expected to include the following Purchase Order details on

their paper invoices. The Invoice must accurately contain:

o Invoice No.

o Invoice Date

o Vendor’s DUNS #

o Purchase Order No.(s)

o Date of shipment

o Accurate payment terms

o Payment currency

o List of UPCs shipped (this must match the UPC that is ordered on the PO)

o List of Product Descriptions shipped

o Quantity Shipped by Item (in eaches) by UPCs

o Accurate Unit Price (per each) of UPCs shipped

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v 8.0 November 2021

o Detailed list of other applicable charges & unit/total price per charge

o Accurate invoice sub-total

o Accurate calculation of total applicable taxes & duties

o Accurate calculation of total all other applicable charges

o Accurate grand total calculation

• An Invoice is considered to be inaccurate and non-compliant if it does not meet any

of the above requirements.

• An inaccurate Invoice may be subject to the respective compliance chargeback.

7.4. IN GOOD CONDITION (SHIPMENT QUALITY)

7.4.1. CASE & PALLET LABELING GUIDELINE

Indigo’s Case & Pallet Labeling Guideline applies to all inbound product that has been

purchased for resale by Indigo Books & Music. This guideline plays a key role in ensuring that

vendors provide the label requirements for shipment to our DC and Store locations in the

manner expected to support our supply chain productivity goals.

Definitions:

Master/Outer Case/Pack: a vendor’s outermost carton containing the ordered units, packed

loosely or in inner packs.

Inner Case/Pack: packaging material (i.e. inner carton, polybag, …) grouping together a

number of ordered units within a master/outer pack.

7.4.2. MASTER/OUTER CASE & PALLET LABELING REQUIREMENTS FOR EDI VENDORS

Indigo expects that the majority of our vendors are transacting via EDI. This section applies to all

vendors transacting via EDI.

General Label Requirements (EDI shipments)

A labeling violation will occur if a label is missing, inaccurate or unscannable. Reasons why a

label would be identified as missing, inaccurate or unscannable include:

• GS1-128 label is missing

• Invalid SSCC-18 code used for Handling Unit Number

• Invalid characters (presence of symbols or alpha characters)

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v 8.0 November 2021

• Duplicate barcodes (duplicate barcodes will not be accepted)

• Photocopy (photocopies of labels taped to cases will not scan correctly)

• Poor print quality which causes the label to not scan correctly

• Defaced and/or partially missing label

• Barcode and human readable are different (barcode must de-code to the human

readable number printed on the label)

• Barcode is too big (bleeds to edge of label) or too small

• Tape over label (including “clear” tape)

• PO #, UPC, Carton QTY not indicated on the label

• Incorrect item UPC and/or carton QTY indicated on label

• Incorrect Ship-to included on the label

• Carton weight is missing

Outer Case (Master Carton) Label Requirements for EDI Vendors Sending Case/Pack Level ASNs

Each Outer Case must contain an EDI GS1-128 Label in accordance with GS1 Global Standards.

Indigo’s label requirements follow standard GS1/EAN SSCC-18 common label formats. Detailed

information about the SSCC-18 data structure and associated GS1/EAN-128 symbol can be

found online at http://www.gs1ca.org/home.asp.

Indigo GS1- 128 Label Zones

The label is formatted into several information zones (see below). Zones include both human

readable information and GS1/EAN-128 information. Each zone contains a zone title and

information pertaining to that zone. Please see the illustration and zone explanations below.

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v 8.0 November 2021

llustration not to scale

Actual size = 4”x6” conforming to GS1 standards

Zone A

Ship From:

Ship From Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Zone B

Ship To:

Ship To Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Zone C

Carrier:

(420) Ship To Postal Code

Zone D

B/L Number:

PO:

UPC:

Carton Qty:

(420) 85263

Zone E

Final Destination Store:

Final Destination:

Zone F

(91) 956

Final Destination Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Zone G

Serialized Shipping Container Number

(00) 0 125385 012345678 9

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v 8.0 November 2021

Zone

Vendors ship from name and address is required

10 to 12 pt font

Ship to name and address is required

10 to 12 pt font

Shipment Information

-Carrier is required

- B/L # is required if available; however, it must be

provided in EDI 856

- PO Number is required

- UPC is required

- Carton Qty (total # of units in the carton) is required

10 to 16 pt font

Ship To postal code and barcode (optional)

10 to 16 pt font

Final Destination Store Number and bar code

(for Cross-Dock shipments only; if DC shipment,

indicate DC #)

10 to 16 pt font

Final Destination Name and Address

(for Cross-Dock shipments only; leave blank for DC

shipments)

10 to 16 pt font

UCC-128 Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC-18) is

required

Packaging Type indicator (3

digit):

• “0” for case/carton

• “1” for pallet

20 mil bars

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v 8.0 November 2021

Cross Dock Label Requirements (where applicable)

Indigo’s labeling requirements for cross-dock shipments are slightly modified from the GS1-128

Label Zone Example provided above. The Final Destination Name and Address in Zone F must

also include the Indigo DC Dock Spot that corresponds to this Final Destination Name & Address.

Ship From:

Ship From Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Ship To:

Ship To Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Carrier: (420) Ship To Postal Code

B/L Number:

PO:

UPC:

Carton Qty:

(420) 85263

Final Destination SAN #: Final Destination:

(92) 1186213 Final Destination Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Dock Spot (Actual 3 Digit Number XXX)

*Illustration not to scale

Actual size = 4”x6”

Zone A

Serialized Shipping Container Number

Zone B

Zone C

Zone E

Zone D

Zone F

Zone G

(00) 0 125385 012345678 9

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v 8.0 November 2021

Zone

Content

Vendors ship from name and address is required 10 to 12 pt font

Ship to name and address is required 10 to 12 pt font

Shipment Information

-Carrier is required

- B/L # is required if available

- PO Number is required

- UPC is required if available

-Carton Qty required

10 to 16 pt font

D Ship To postal code and barcode 10 to 16 pt font

Final Destination SAN # 10 to 16 pt font

Final Destination Name and Address; 10 to 16 pt font

Dock Spot (Actual 3 Digit Number XXX) based on

the store's X-Dock number provided by Indigo.

UCC-128 Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC-18) is

required

Packaging Type indicator (3rd digit):

• “0” for case/carton

• “1” for pallet

20 mil bars

Label Placement

• The GS1-128 label must be placed on the shortest side of the outer case on the right hand

side;

• Labels must all be placed under shrink wrap (not overtop), but the barcode on the label

must be scannable;

• Barcodes must be printed in vertical bar configuration;

• Placement of the label must be such that the bottom edge of the barcode containing the

SSCC-18 is located at least 1.25 inches from the bottom of the outer case (shipping

container);

• The outermost bar of the barcode cannot be closer than 1.25 inches from the vertical edge

of the outer case (shipping container);

• If unable to have the barcode containing the SSCC-18 at least 1.25 inch from any edge of

the outer case (shipping container), then place the GS1-128 carton label on "top" of the

outer case (shipping container);

• Outer cases should only contain one unique GS1-128 label. All additional “internal” barcodes

on the outer case must be marked out or covered as this is in conflict with the barcode on

the GS1 -128 shipping label.

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Pallet Label Requirements for EDI Vendors Sending Pallet Level ASNs (for Retail DC only)- IF

APPLICABLE

These requirements only apply if a vendor is providing Indigo a shipment that contains a pallet

level ASN. There are significant productivity improvements that Indigo and the vendor can

realize from using this ASN structure. Please note that Pallet/Tare Level ASNs are NOT SUPPORTED

at our Western DC location (pack level only)

The label requirements are as follows:

For full or half-pallet shipments of a single product (i.e. single UPC):

• Vendor provides a single Pallet Level ASN (SOTI structure) rather than a case level ASN (SOPI

structure). This allows Indigo to receive the entire product on the pallet with one scan of the

pallet label rather than with multiple scans of each case on the pallet.

• Only a pallet HU GS1-128 label is required; individual carton HU GS1-128 labels are not

required. The pallet label must be placed on the top carton on the right hand side, under

the shrink wrap (not overtop), but the barcode on the label must be scannable.

• The UPC and description of the respective product and the total quantity of units must be

marked/indicated on each individual master carton on the shipment.

• Two half-pallet shipments may be place on one skid if separated by a slip sheet and/or a

pallet (hence creating layers), with a pallet HU GS1-128 label per layer/shipment.

• Pallet shipments must be packed to a maximum pallet height of 52 inches, and one case

pack size only.

• Alternatively, vendors may provide a SUPER-PACK SOPI ASN using the existing SOPI ASN

structure, essentially creating one big carton for the total quantity of units on the pallet:

• this option requires only a pallet HU GS1-128 label;

• individual carton HU GS1-128 labels are not required (*only item UPC and QTY must

be indicated on the carton);

• Please note that for this option: the Packaging Code in the TD1 segment must

indicate “PLT” (not “CTN”), and the Lading Quantity must indicate the total # of

pallets.

• Please note that only one structure type (SOPI or SOTI) can be used per ASN, that is, one ASN

cannot contain both SOPI and SOTI structure types.)

Package Type Indicator - Case vs. Pallet Label

As indicated in Zone G of Indigo GS1- 128 Label Zones); the 3

digit of the SSCC code indicates

the unit level packaging type (i.e. case/carton vs. pallet) as follows:

• “0” for carton

• “1” for pallet

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v 8.0 November 2021

• For pack/case/carton level shipments, the individual pack/case/carton labels would include

a “0” in the 3

digit of the SSCC code.

• For pallet shipments, the pallet label would include a “1” in the 3

digit of the SSCC code.

7.4.3. MASTER/OUTER CASE LABELING REQUIREMENTS FOR NON-EDI VENDORS

Indigo expects that the majority of our vendors are transacting via EDI. This section applies to all

vendors that are not transacting via EDI.

i. General Label Requirements (Non-EDI shipments)

A labeling violation will occur if a label is missing or incorrect. Reasons why a label would be

identified as missing or incorrect include:

• Label is not affixed to carton

• Defaced and/or partially missing label

• PO #, UPC, Carton QTY not indicated on the label

• Incorrect item UPC and/or carton QTY indicated on label

• Incorrect Ship-to included on the label

• Carton Weight is missing

ii. Outer Case (Master Carton) Label Requirements for Non-EDI Vendors

Each outer case must contain a Non-EDI Shipping Label as outlined below. Please produce the

non-EDI carton label presented below, using the subsequent Zone content table also included

below, and in the appropriate size. Place a label on each outer case in the shipment (an

editable label template can be provided upon request).

Indigo Non-EDI Shipping Label Zones

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The label is formatted into several information zones; it is very similar to Indigo’s GS1-128 Shipping

Label for ASNs provided above. Please see the illustration and zone explanations below.

*Illustration not to scale

Actual size = 4”x6”

Zone A

Ship From:

Ship From Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Zone B

Ship To:

Ship To Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Zone C

Carrier:

Description of Product :

Zone D

B/L Number:

PO #:

UPC : 9781234567890 or 123456789012

Carton Qty:

Gross Weight of Case:

Zone E

Final Destination:

Final Destination Name

Address 1

Address 2

City, State Postal Code

Zone F

NON EDI

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v 8.0 November 2021

Zone

Content

Vendors ship from name and address is required

10 to 12 pt font

Ship to name and address is required

10 to 12 pt font

Shipment Information

• Carrier if available

• B/L # if available

• PO Number is required

• Carton quantity (# of total units in carton) is

required

10 to 16 pt font

Product Information

• Product Description is required

• UPC # is required if single product in the case;

GS1-128 scannable barcode is optional (if

available)

• Gross weight of the case is required

10 to 16 pt font

Final Destination name and address

(for Cross-Dock shipments only; leave blank for DC

shipments)

10 to 16 pt font

“NON EDI” indicator is required

36 to 40 pt font

7.4.4. INNER CASE/PACK LABELING REQUIREMENTS (EDI & NON-EDI VENDORS)

The following requirements only apply if there is an Inner Case/Pack inside a Master Case. Indigo

does not require an EDI GS1-128 label to be provided on inner cases/packs for EDI vendors;

however, Indigo does require labeling for Inner Cases/Packs as follows:

• Each inner case/pack must be labeled with a human readable UPC of the product AND

a scannable barcode of the UPC.

• The inner case pack label must include:

• The unit quantity contained within the inner case/pack,

• A description of the product.

• The inner case/pack label can be no smaller than 1” x 1”

• Use of a stencil and/or printed on the inner case/pack is permitted.

The inner case label must appear on one side only, in the upper right-hand corner.

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7.4.5. LABELING FOR SPECIALTY PRODUCTS- EDI & NON-EDI VENDORS

Fragile Products

• Fragile or other product requiring special handling must be clearly labeled on the case.

• If commodities require special handling or stowage, the packaging should be marked

accordingly; this information should also appear on the Bill of Lading.

• Any cautionary markings must be permanent and easy to read. Use the languages of

both the country of origin and English.

• The use of stencils is recommended for legibility – do not use crayon, pencil, or chalk,

which may be erased, or tags and cards, which may become detached.

Other Handling Indicators

• Expiry’ and ‘Best Before’ dates must be clearly indicated on at least one side of each

carton.

• Any goods requiring temperature control including protection from freezing must be

identified as such on the carton and on the Bill of Lading. It is recommended that

temperature requirements be clearly stated on the cartons as a guideline. Failure to

identify goods in this manner may result in your account being charged for the value of

the goods, freight and any excess freight to replace the goods in the event the carriers

move goods without temperature controls and the goods are unsalable as a result.

Assortments

If “assortments” are being purchased by Indigo, please contact your Buyer or

vendorcompliance@indigo.ca to further discuss the master data, Purchase Order and receiving

processes associated with product of this nature. Indigo’s experience has been that there are

differing definitions of “assortments’ in the General Merchandise community so this will assist in

avoiding misunderstanding and poor supply chain execution. Please ensure that the UPC label

on the assortment pack is the same UPC as ordered on the Purchase Order; the assortment UPC

should also be included in the respective ASN and invoice.

7.4.6. LABELING COMPLIANCE TO CANADIAN LAWS AND RE GULATIONS

• All case and package labeling must comply with all applicable Canadian laws and

regulations, and must adhere to any prescribed national standards and warnings.

• Cost of all labeling is the responsibility of the vendor and must be included in the cost of the

goods. Product must meet these conditions at time of shipment from vendor’s facility or

manufacturing site.

• Vendors may be asked to provide a copy of inner/outer case label for review, if necessary.

• Please refer to The Case and Pallet Labeling Guidelines for further detail.

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v 8.0 November 2021

Compliance

A violation/infraction means non-compliance with any component of this guideline for receipts

under a single shipment.

Example:

• Non-compliance of the shipping label guideline on each carton of a 60-carton shipment

in response to one Purchase Order constitutes a single violation, not 60 violations.

Failure to meet Indigo’s requirements will lead to the respective shipment being subject to the

applicable compliance chargeback.

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7.5. PACKING GUIDELINE

Indigo’s Packing Guideline applies to all product purchased for resale by Indigo Books & Music

Inc. inbound to each of our DC and Store locations. This guideline plays a key role in ensuring

that vendors provide the packaging, carton and pallet requirements for shipments to our DC

and Store locations in the manner expected to support our supply chain productivity goals.

IMPORTANT: Please refer to the PACKING VENDOR GUIDELINES - ONLINE, RETAIL & DROP SHIP for

full detail on ONLINE Packing requirements as there are further specific details for packing for this

channel.

The Packaging Guideline includes Indigo’s requirements for:

• Inner/Outer Case Pack

• Carton Specific Packaging

• Inner Packaging Material

• Pallet Specific Packaging

• Packaging for Specialty Product, including:

o Fragile product

o Apparel & Accessories

o Food/Gourmet

o Other

• Inner/Outer Package Labeling

• Environmental Reporting and Packaging Requirements

• Price Ticket Placement (on customer facing merchandise)

Indigo is an environmentally responsible company. We encourage the use of environmentally

sensitive packaging materials (recycled and recyclable).

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7.5.1. INNER/OUTER CASE PACK REQUIREMENTS

• All products must be packed in cartons/cases in accordance with the master/outer pack

and inner pack quantities that are agreed to on the original Purchase Order. Any deviation

in inner/outer pack quantities may result in a compliance chargeback.

• Retail & Western DC requirement: each outer case/master carton must contain only one

SKU/UPC/EAN (exception: Online DC orders).

• Requirement for all DCs: Each inner case must contain only one SKU/UPC/EAN.

• Requirement for all DCs: Each outer case/carton must contain merchandise for only one

Purchase Order.

• For Apparel & Accessories: each carton must contain only one style, colour and size

combination (that is, one SKU/UPC).

• If a single SKU/UPC does not completely fill a carton, the remaining space must be filled with

inner packaging material (dunnage).

7.5.2. CARTON SPECIFIC PACKAGING REQUIREMENTS

Master/Outer Pack (Carton) Packaging Requirements:

All products shipped to our DC & store locations must be packed in cartons/cases (the

exception is some small couriered orders). At a minimum, all master/outer cartons/cases used to

pack product to be shipped must be packaged according to the following standards:

Master/Outer Case - type/dimensions/weight:

• Cases must be made from new/clean corrugated cardboard.

Master/Outer Pack

(QTY=24 eaches)

Inner Pack

(QTY=6 eaches)

Master/Outer & Inner Packs

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v 8.0 November 2021

• Cases must not exceed 23” (L) x 22” (W) x 16” (H) (exceptions for gift, toy and baby

product must be pre-approved by the respective Indigo Category Manager ahead of

delivery).

• Cases must be double-wall (5ply) with minimum edge crush strength of 50 lbs (22 kilos),

and a bursting strength of 200lb/in2 (1379kPa -13.4kg/cm2).

• Filled case weight must not exceed 40 lbs (exceptions must be pre-approved by the

respective Indigo Category Manager ahead of delivery)

• Exceptions are for Food (liquids & semi-liquid) and Furniture which require a bursting

strength of 275lb/in2 (1896kPa - 18.4kg/cm2)

• The top and bottom seams of open cartons/cases must be sealed using strong packing

tape.

• Use of binding, straps, staples, shrink-wrap or glue is not acceptable.

• The use of cardboard Gaylord boxes/containers, wooden or plastic crates are not

permitted.

Master/Outer Case - Carton Markings:

• Carton Markings for master/outer case should include the following:

• UPC number

• Product Description

• Carton Quantity

• Carton Weight

• Only vendor markings regarding respective shipment, possibly corrugate manufacturer

info, and courier label (if applicable) may be on master carton. No other markings are

allowed.

• Product indicators, logos, and labels on the outside of the master carton must be for the

product contained inside only.

• Special handling instructions must be indicated on the master carton (i.e. “fragile”,

“glass”, “This way up”, “Do not double stack” etc…).

Inner Pack Packaging Requirements:

Inner Case – type:

• Inner packs may be in the form of cartons or polybags, depending on item

specifications.

• The top and bottom seams of open inner cases must be sealed using strong packing

tape.

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v 8.0 November 2021

• Polybags must be clear and made from film that is at least 0.75 mil [19.0 µm] thick.

• If this is a polybag that Indigo’s customer will ultimately receive, and it has an opening

that is greater than 14 inches in circumference, then the polybag must have on it,

printed legibly in black, the following anti-suffocation safety warning in both official

languages:

"PLASTIC BAGS CAN BE DANGEROUS. TO AVOID DANGER OF SUFFOCATION KEEP THIS BAG

AWAY FROM BABIES AND CHILDREN."

“LES SACS DE PLASTIQUE PEUVENT ÊTRE DANGEREUX. POUR ÉVITER LE DANGER DE

SUFFOCATION, NE LAISSEZ PAS CE SAC À LA PORTÉE DES BÉBÉS NI DES ENFANTS”

• This warning may be expressed in different words if those words clearly convey the same

warning.

• Inner packs must have a unique scannable and human readable UPC/EAN properly

affixed.

Inner Case - Markings:

• Carton Markings for Inner Case should show:

• Product Description

• UPC number

• Carton Quantity

Drop Test Requirement:

Please refer to the Appendix for the required Drop Test Procedure.

7.5.3. INNER PACKAGING MATERIAL REQUIREMENTS

• Although bulk shipments are warehoused at Indigo DCs, product must be packed properly

to handle further distribution to Indigo Stores or online customers.

• At a minimum, all products should be packed inside a carton/case according to the

following standards to ensure that they are adequately secured, supported and protected

from damage during travel and handling:

o Product must be properly protected using clean packing materials, and sufficiently

separated from other items within the same container so as to avoid possible

damage due to contact.

o For Online DC orders, product must be packed as an individual Selling Unit – an Each

or a Set – in an individual polybag, box or carton, ready for immediate shipment to

our customer with no further repacking required at the Indigo Online DC; a UPC

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v 8.0 November 2021

barcode sticker must be affixed to the Unit/Single Pack (please refer to the PACKING

VENDOR GUIDELINES - ONLINE, RETAIL & DROP SHIP for full detail)

o Inner voids within cartons/cases must be filled with packing materials (dunnage, air

pillows,…).

o Packing materials requirements:

• The use of Packing Paper (dunnage), Tissue, Air Pillows and Foam is permitted

so long as they provide sufficient protective packaging for the products in the

container.

• The use of Packing Poly Peanuts, Newspaper, Printed Material, Hay, or Straw is

not permitted.

o Protective packaging (i.e. polybags, tissue, ‘baggies’,…) must each be labeled (on

the outside) with a scannable and human readable UPC of the product.

o All liquid products must have a sealed cap and must be packed to contain

accidental leakage.

o All furniture or large items must be sufficiently packed to avoid damages from water

and dust and to withstand long haul transportation.

o The use of polystyrene foam for packing furniture is permitted.

o All sharp or pointed objects/product edges must be wrapped in such a way so as to

avoid puncturing the carton/case.

o Protective carton inserts are required on top of product to ensure knife damage will

not occur.

o Please note: vendor is required to send thirty (30) days prior notification of any new

configurations/packaging changes that will ship to Indigo’s DC or Store locations.

o Notification must be sent via email to the respective Indigo Buyer and

VENDORCOMPLIANCE@INDIGO.CA

7.5.4. PALLET SPECIFIC PACKAGING REQUIREMENTS (WHERE APPLICABLE)

Pallet Physical Properties:

Indigo requires that all inbound shipment pallets meet the following requirements:

• Pallet dimensions: 40” x 48”

• Pallet Max Height: must not exceed 52” inches (includes pallet + product height) -

(exceptions must be pre-approved by Indigo Category Manager & DC Product Flow

Manager, ahead of shipment/delivery)

• Pallet type:

o Standard 4-way wooden pallets only

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v 8.0 November 2021

o Please note: CHEP, CPC, plastic, 9-block, chipboard, and damaged pallets are not

acceptable

CHEP Pallet

✓

48”

40”

✓

Pallet Packing & Stacking:

• Shipments for which the total number of cartons make up more than 1 layer of a pallet

should be palletized (exemption: floor loaded containers for sea shipments)

• A Pallet must contain product for one DC or store ship-to-location only (no mixed

destinations).

• Heavier product must be placed on the bottom of the pallet.

• Where possible, cases/cartons containing the same item should be grouped together on

the same pallet, up to a maximum height of 52”.

• All pallets must be securely shrink-wrapped with no overhang of product (see image

below).

• Use of cardboard Gaylord boxes/containers, wooden/plastic crates are not permitted.

• Pallets may be double-stacked only if bottom pallet is leveled and the product on the

bottom pallet will not get damaged.

o Shipper will take responsibility for any damage resulting from double-stacking.

o Triple stacking of pallets is not allowed.

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v 8.0 November 2021

Special Considerations:

• Any merchandise shipment that requires special handling should be identified and

pre-approved prior to the initial shipment by contacting the respective Indigo

contact/buyer and the DC Transportation Manager.

• For example, in the event that filled case weight exceeds maximum allowable

weight of 40 lbs (per case), as this will require special shipping arrangements.

Pallet Shipment – ASN Structure (EDI vendors only, if applicable)

For full or half-pallet shipments of a single product (i.e. single UPC): Indigo requires the

vendor to provide a Pallet shipment, with either a:

1. Pallet ASN (SOTI structure), or

2. Super-Pack ASN (Super-pack SOPI structure)

(Please note that only one structure type (SOPI or SOTI) can be used per ASN, that is, one

ASN cannot contain both SOPI and SOTI structure types.)

7.5.5. PACKAGING FOR SPECIALTY PRODUCTS

Fragile Products

• All fragile items (glassware, ceramics, gift items, furniture…) must be adequately

packaged to protect merchandise from breakage or damage.

• If products require special handling or stowage, the packaging should be marked; this

information should also appear on the Bill of Lading.

• Please refer to Labeling for Specialty Products in the Case & Pallet Labeling Guideline for

further instruction on labeling Fragile product.

Apparel & Accessories

• All apparel merchandise, which is not already pre-packed in a floor-ready (branded)

package, must be individually packed by size in polybags.

• Units sold as assortments/sets/pre-packs (using one UPC number) must be packed in the

same polybag/carton in the full size assortment going to a store.

• Each master carton may contain only one UPC.

• Do not mix sizes, styles or colours in the same carton (unless they are part of an

assortment/set/pre-pack under one UPC).

• Where available, clothing items should be shipped on a sales floor ready hanger.

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v 8.0 November 2021

Food/Gourmet (only where applicable)

• For food, gourmet and any other such product with a shelf life the ‘Best Before’ date

must be clearly indicated on at least one side of each carton (in addition to being

indicated on each of the item itself).

• Any goods requiring temperature control including protection from freezing must be

identified as such on the carton and on the Bill of Lading.

• In order to ensure receipt and put-away within a 48hr window, gourmet/food and any

other perishable product must be clearly indicated/identified as such:

o On the Freight Notification Form (for Indigo controlled freight);

o At time of booking a DC delivery appointment (for vendor-controlled freight).

Other

• Any pre-approved shipments containing oversized and/or heavy cartons must have

“HEAVY” and/or “OVERSIZED” marked on the respective carton in either label or legible

preprint carton marking format.

• Any cartons containing cosmetics must have the ‘Expiry’ and ‘Best Before’ dates clearly

indicated (marked/labeled) on at least one side of each carton (in addition to being

indicated on each of the item itself).

7.5.6. ADDITIONAL PACKAGING REQUIREMENTS

Product and Packaging Requirements:

Indigo will not accept illegally harvested wood and paper products. Indigo will immediately

terminate business with vendors found to use such wood in its packaging materials.

Sustainable Packaging:

Where paper packaging is used (either corrugate or non-fluted paperboard packaging), Indigo

prefers that vendors avoid virgin materials and use recycled materials.

Wood Packaging Requirements:

Please refer to the Appendix section for Indigo’s wood packaging requirements.

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7.5.7. PRICE STICKER SPECIFICATION & PLACEMENT (ON CUSTOMER FACING

MERCHANDISE)- FOR RETAIL DC ORDERS

All merchandise must be shipped to our Distribution Centres and Stores with a scannable UPC or

EAN barcode, and a Price Ticket/Sticker placed on the customer-facing merchandise (boxed/

wrapped or unboxed/unwrapped).

Please note: this guideline does not apply to Online merchandise (Online POs) shipping to the

Online DC; Online product should not have price stickers attached.

Please refer to the Indigo Private Label Brand Guidelines document for Indigo’s brand standards

and regulations for all Private Label General Merchandise (price ticket guidelines).

Please ensure any labels or price stickers used are low-tack.

7.5.8. DAMAGE-FREE SHIPMENT/PRODUCT (“DAMAGE FREE”)

• Indigo expects vendor shipments to be delivered damage-free, with all products packed

according to Indigo’s Packaging Guidelines.

• A shipment is considered to be damaged and non-compliant if there is any visible or

concealed damage to the packaging and/or the product, rendering it not saleable.

• A damaged and non-compliant shipment may be subject to a compliance chargeback as

per the Compliance Chargeback Schedule.

• Indigo will be noting any visible damage on the Bill of Lading at the time of offloading:

▪ If vendor is responsible for freight, the damaged articles will be left on the carrier’s

trailer to be returned to vendor, and the respective invoice will be short paid for the

respective amount. Vendor will be responsible for initiating the claim with their

appointed carrier.

▪ If Indigo is responsible for the freight terms, Indigo will initiate the claim with their

appointed carrier.

• For concealed damage, Indigo will place the respective damaged items in their DC

Quarantine and the respective invoice will be short paid as a result (for the amount of the

damaged articles):

▪ Vendor will be responsible for picking up the damaged product within seven (7)

calendar days of being sent the notification by Indigo or may choose to pay Indigo

to dispose of the damaged product. Indigo reserves the right to dispose of the goods

if pick-up arrangements have not been made by the vendor within the 7 days. This

policy applies to both our warehouses and all of our stores within Canada.

• In the event of any required sorting/reworking at the DC for damaged shipments, the

respective hours of rework will be charged at a rate of $75/hr as a Rework chargeback

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SECTION 8 - VENDOR COMPLIANCE PROGRAM

SUMMARY

Indigo expects vendors to comply with the guidelines and requirements detailed in this manual.

Non-compliance with these requirements disrupts Indigo’s supply chain processes, thus affecting

the high level of service we strive to deliver to our customers. Our vendor compliance policy is

intended to recover incremental costs incurred by Indigo as a result of such non-compliance.

In the event a non-compliant shipment cannot be accepted, Indigo reserves the right to reject

the shipment. In those instances, the vendor will be responsible for:

• All transportation and storage charges related to the rejected shipment;

• Arranging pick-up of the rejected freight within seven (7) calendar days of such

notification being sent by Indigo. Indigo reserves the right to dispose of the goods if pick-

up arrangements have not been made by the vendor within the 7 days. This policy

applies to all our warehouses and stores within Canada.

8.1. COMPLIANCE CHARGEBACKS

Below is a list of our Delivery Guidelines and respective Compliance Chargebacks in the event

of non-compliance (please note that new guidelines and/or chargebacks may be added at

any time as required):

COMPLIANCE CHARGEBACK LIST

Metric

Delivery Guideline

Violation

Chargeback

Amount

ON-TIME

On-Time Shipment (OTS)

Handed over to Carrier

within

Ship Window :

Ocean/Air (outside NA):

-10/+3 bus. days early/late

vs CHO

Land/Air (inside NA)

-3/+3 bus. days early/late vs

CHO

PO Handed Over to Carrier:

Ocean/Air (outside NA):

> 10 business days earlier than PO

CHO Date

> 3 business days after PO CHO Date

Land/Air (inside NA):

> 3 business days earlier than PO

CHO Date

> 3 business days after PO CHO Date

2% x QTY* early

5% x QTY* late

*(PO value)

2% x QTY* early

5% x QTY* late

*(PO value)

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On-Time Delivery (OTD)

Delivered to DC or Store

within

Delivery Window:

3 bus. days earlier/3 bus.

days later

than agreed to PO Delivery

Date

Delivered to DC/Store:

> 3 business days earlier than PO

Delivery Date

> 3 business days after PO Delivery

Date

2% x QTY* early

5% x QTY* late

*(PO value)

ASN Delivery

▪ Sent immediately after

shipment departs from

vendor’s facility

▪ Received and

processed successfully

before delivery of

physical shipment at

DC/Store(s)

Missing/Late ASN:

▪ EDI 856 not sent

▪ Flow Thru Missing ASN

▪ Valid EDI 856 sent late

o Retail DC (RDC)

o Western DC (CDC)

o Online DC (ODC)

o Store

$250 per shipment

for RDC/CDC

$100 per shipment

for ODC/Stores

DC/Store Delivery

Requirements:

▪ Appointment Booking

▪ Correct Address/Ship

Location

▪ Paperwork

DC/Store Delivery:

▪ No Appointment; Early/ Late

Arrival

▪ Shipped To Wrong Location

▪ Paperwork Error/Missing Required

paperwork (ie. BOL, Packing Slip,

PO,…)

$250 per PO

COMPLET

Fill Rate

PO Line 95%-105% filled on:

• Initial shipment

• Overall PO

Fill rate variance from PO Line QTY

5% of non-compliant

QTY*

*(PO value not filled)

ACCURATE

Accurate Documentation

▪ BOL Accuracy

▪ Packing Slip Accuracy

▪ Non-compliant/Missing BOL

▪ Non-compliant/Missing Packing

Slip

▪ PO not on BOL

$100 per

violation/PO

(applies to all cases

inaccuracy/invalidity

)

- 76 -

v 8.0 November 2021

Accurate EDI

Documentation

▪ ASN Accuracy

▪ POA Accuracy

▪ Invoice Accuracy

Various EDI document errors

$100 per

violation/PO

Accurate UPC

▪ Correct UPC shipped

▪ Correct Product

▪ Wrong product shipped/

incorrect UPC/ISBN

▪ UPC/ISBN Mismatch

▪ UPC/ISBN not on PO

$250 per PO

Accurate Product

Dimensions

▪ Correct Product

Dimensions as per

specification of ordered

UPC.

▪ Correct Product Volume

(based on Dims)

▪ Correct Product Weight

▪ Incorrect Product Dimensions

▪ Incorrect Product Volume

▪ Incorrect Product Weight

▪ Incorrect Carton Volume

▪ PIM Errors

$50 per UPC

Accurate Case Pack QTY

(Case Count)

▪ Incorrect case pack quantity

(case count)

$250 per PO

CASE &

PALLET LABELING

Case & Pallet Label

(General)

For both EDI/non-EDI Outer Case &

Pallet Labels:

▪ Label Missing

▪ Label Barcode Not

Scannable

▪ UPC Barcode Not Visible

$250 per PO

Inner Case/Pack Label

(for both EDI & non-EDI)

▪ No Scannable UPC barcode on

Inner Label

▪ No human readable UPC on

Inner Label

▪ QTY not indicated on Inner Label

▪ Incorrect inner case QTY

indicated

▪ Incorrect label placement (inner)

$250 per PO

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v 8.0 November 2021

Outer Case Label

(for both EDI & non-EDI)

▪ Incorrect Label format

▪ Incorrect label placement

(outer)

▪ Shipping Label Covered/Not

Visible

$250 per PO

Label Accuracy

▪ Label missing:

o Ship to/from address

o UPC/ISBN

o PO#

o Case/Pallet QTY

o HU (handling Unit) /

SSCC18 code

▪ EDI label error

▪ HU Error:

Incorrect/Mismatch/Duplicate

$250 per shipment

Cross-Dock Label

▪ Incorrect cross-dock label format

▪ Incorrect/Missing DC Dock Spot

▪ Incorrect Final Destination

Name/Address indicated

$250 per PO

Specialty Product/Handling

Labels

Polybag Markings

▪ Special handling/stowage not

labeled/marked

▪ Required label markings missing

(i.e. FLOW THRU, SHERWAY 965,

Street Sensitive, etc…)

▪ Markings not legible/erased,

▪ Markings not written in all

required languages

▪ Expiry/Best Before dates/

Temperature Control not

indicated when required

▪ Labeling error for Assortments

$250 per PO

PACKAGING

Single SKU cartons

(applicable to General

Merchandise product only;

non Cross-Dock)

▪ Mixed UPCs in inner case

▪ Mixed UPCs or POs in outer case

$250 per PO

Inner Packaging Materials

▪ Incorrect packaging material

used

$250 per PO

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v 8.0 November 2021

Pallet Requirements

▪ Incorrect/bad pallet type

▪ Broken/Damaged Pallet

▪ Improper packing (bulk)/stacking

▪ Pallet overhang

▪ Maximum pallet height of 52

inches exceeded

$250 per shipment

Carton Requirements

• Correct Carton Weight

• Correct Carton

Dimensions

• Correct Carton Volume

(based on Case Dims)

• Correct Carton Type

• Carton Markings:

UPC/QTY

▪ Filled Carton/Case weight > 40

LBS

▪ Incorrect Carton/Case

dimensions

▪ Incorrect Carton/Case Volume

▪ Incorrect Carton Type

▪ Damaged Carton

▪ Missing Carton Markings:

UPC/QTY

$250 per PO

Pallet Shipments

Should be a pallet shipment

for single SKU pallet

▪ Missed Pallet Shipment

$250 per PO

Packaging for Specialty

Products

▪ Specialty Product not

labeled/identified:

o Fragile/heavy/oversized

o Expiration date missing on

Food/Gourmet/Cosmetic

$250 per PO

Packaging for

Apparel/Accessories

▪ Apparel/Accessories not

individually packaged (inner

protective packaging)

▪ Mixed UPCs (non-assortment) per

inner/outer case pack

$250 per PO

Product Package Labels

▪ No UPC barcode label on

product packaging (including on

individual item protective

packaging)

$250 per PO

Package Type

▪ Unacceptable package type

▪ Bulk Vs Carton

$250 per PO

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v 8.0 November 2021

Wood Packaging

Requirements

(import vendors only)

▪ Violation of specified

requirements

(i.e. illegally harvested wood and

paper products)

$250 per PO

Price Sticker Requirements

(on customer facing

merchandise)

▪ Violation of specified price sticker

requirements (i.e. specifications,

contents, placement,…)

$250 per PO

EDI

Transacting via EDI

(i.e. EDI PO)

▪ EDI non-compliance

$250 per non-

compliant PO (non-

EDI)

DAMAG

E-

FREE

Damage-Free Shipment

▪ Damaged Shipment/product

$250 per PO

FLOW

THRU

Flow Thru (F/T) Shipment

Requirements

(where applicable)

▪ F/T pallet mixed with non F/T

▪ F/T – missing ASN

▪ F/T – partial case

▪ Other F/T error

$250 per PO

ROUTING

On-Time Booking

▪ Late Booking

▪ Missed Pick-up/ Handover to

Carrier

$250 per PO

VGM Declaration

▪ Cost of weighing container(s) at

port

▪ VGM Declaration Non-

Compliance

Actual cost incurred

per container (in

CAD)

$100 USD per

shipment

Customs Documents

▪ For international ocean

shipments: documents

must be provided to

Delmar not later than 3

days after departure.

▪ For air and truck (North

America): the

documents are required

by Delmar prior to cargo

departure.

Required commercial documents &

Original BOL/Telex Rls not received

by Delmar prior to freight arrival in

Canada.

• Customs hold

• Yard Storage: Container +

Chassis Detention & Storage

(container)

• Yard pull/movement

(container)

$250 per PO with

late customs

documents incident

$250/day per

container

$200 per yard pull,

per container

QA issue

(as identified)

▪ Per incident/violation

▪ Other charges as

required/applicable

$250 per PO

(+ Other charges as

applicable)

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v 8.0 November 2021

PRODUCT

DATA

Accurate & Complete

Product Data

▪ Refer to Product Data

Compliance section for full detail

$50 per UPC

(exception: $100 per

UPC for missing

image)

ALL

Required Rework/Sorting

to correct non-compliant

shipment

▪ For any sorting/rework required

(at DC & Store locations)

▪ or, charged per unit (if required)

– pricing TBD

+ $75/hr

(in addition to fees

above)

8.2. MEASURING NON-COMPLIANCE & NOTIFICATIONS

Non-compliance is measured daily based on the scheduled ETA and delivered condition of the

Purchase Order. The delivery information is tracked, evaluated and measured against our supply

chain delivery guidelines. Non-compliance detections and respective chargeback amounts are

communicated weekly via email notification, details of which can also be found on our

Compliance portal (https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com/)

8.3. QUARANTINE

Non-compliant shipment may be placed in the DC or Store Quarantine until the error is

corrected/resolved to enable receipt of the shipment. There is, however, a DC Quarantine

Threshold of fifty dollars ($50) for the total value of the non-compliant shipment, below which the

contents of the respective shipment are disposed of to avoid inefficient use of labour and

resources.

8.4. COMPLIANCE CHARGE DISPUTE PROCESS

Indigo allows vendors to dispute a compliance charge as follows:

• a dispute must be INITIATED on the Compliance portal with detail and respective

supporting documentation;

• a dispute with no detail or supporting documents will be automatically denied.

• the dispute must be initiated within 60 (sixty) days of the chargeback notification (sent to

vendor).

Examples of supporting documentation to include in a dispute:

• Reason for the dispute

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v 8.0 November 2021

• Signed delivery documentation (i.e. BOL, Packing slip, POD, …)

• For missing ASN infractions:

o the first 4 segments of the ASN X12 document; or

o ASN ID, Date ASN sent, ICN

• Emails with supporting information/details/pre-approvals

• Copy of approved PO Change Request Form

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v 8.0 November 2021

SECTION 9 – SHIPPING GUIDELINES - INTERNATIONAL VENDORS

The Shipping Guidelines describe Indigo’s inbound shipping processes and requirements for

international vendors. All vendors are required to comply with these requirements to ensure

efficient and timely product flow from vendor to Indigo.

Questions regarding Indigo’s Shipping Requirements can be emailed to inbou[email protected]

Questions regarding Routing can be emailed to I[email protected]

This section includes:

1. Freight Terms and Responsibilities (summary table)

2. Inbound Shipment Requirements:

i. Packing Slip

ii. Bill of Lading

iii. Physical Presentation Requirements

iv. Routing Instructions

3. Domestic Shipment Procedure (shipments originating within Canada only)

4. International Shipment Procedures & Requirements (shipments originating outside

of Canada, including from U.S.A.)

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v 8.0 November 2021

9.1. FREIGHT TERMS & RESPONSIBILITIES

The following chart summarizes the responsibilities of both the buyer and the seller for each of the current

Inco-terms (an international set of trade terms).

Incoterms 2010

Incoterms for Multi-Modal Use: EXW Ex Works DAT Delivered at Terminal

FCA Free Carrier DAP Delivered at Place

CPT Carriage Paid To DDP Delivered Duty Paid

CIP Carriage and insurance Paid To

Incoterms for Non-Containerized FAS Free Alongside Ship CFR Cost and Freight

Ocean Freight: FOB Free On Board CIF Cost, Insurance, Freight

Buyer = B Seller = S

Cost Headings

Loading at seller’s

premises

(

)

Domestic pre-

carriage/Local Cartage

(

)

Trade documentation in

country of export

Export Customs

clearance and any duty

or taxes payable upon

export

Loading at carrier’s

terminal at origin

Loading at vessel at port

of origin

International freight

(main carriage)

Transport cargo

insurance

Unloading of vessel at

port of destination

(3)

(

)

Unloading at destination

terminal

N/A

(

)

(

)

Trade documentation in

country of import

Import Customs

clearance and any duty

or taxes payable upon

import

Domestic on-

carriage/Local Cartage

(

)

Unloading at buyer’s

premises

Other costs: Cost distribution according to party agreement not regulated in Incoterms

- 84 -

v 8.0 November 2021

(1) It can be stipulated with a specific instruction that the seller, at his own expense, is to be

responsible for certain loading requirements. This must be written into the contract in order for it to

be effective

(2) The named place following the INCOTERM “FCA” determines the point of transfer. If the named

place is the seller’s premise, the seller must LOAD the goods on the carrier’s vehicle supplied by

the buyer. If the named place is the carrier’s terminal, the seller must DELIVER the goods to the

named terminal and the buyer is responsible for payment to UNLOAD the vehicle at the carrier’s

terminal

(3) Buyer pays unloading costs unless such costs were for the seller’s account under the contract of

carriage.

(4) The point stated after “Delivered At Place” determines who is to pay the cost. If the point is

indicated as DAP (buyer’s premises), the cost is to be paid by the seller. If the trade term reads

DAP (terminal) the seller has to pay the cost to that terminal, and the buyer has to pay the cost to

the final destination.

9.2. INBOUND SHIPMENT REQUIREMENTS

9.2.1. PACKING SLIP

All shipments must be accompanied by a separate Packing List/Slip that should meet the

following requirements, at a minimum:

a. Each Packing List should contain:

• Purchase Order #

• Date of Shipment

• Ship-to Location/Address (Destination)

• List of UPC(s)

• List of Product Description(s)Total units shipped

• List of correct lot numbers (if applicable)

b. For international shipments, the Packing List must include the number of cartons per

SKU/per PO at the container level when shipping multiple containers under one MBL

(Master Bill of Lading).

c. Packing List should be easily identified on the outside of the shipment.

Packing List information should be accurate, reflecting the contents of the shipment

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v 8.0 November 2021

9.2.2. BILL OF LADING

• For EDI vendors, the Bill of Lading # must be included in the transmission of the ASN

(Advanced Shipment Notification).

• All shipments must be accompanied by a Bill of Lading.

• Express Bills of Lading are requested whenever possible. At a minimum, the Bill of Lading

should meet the following requirements (ex. for shipping to Indigo’s Retail DC):

Shipper: Full name and address

Consignee: Indigo Books & Music Inc.

100 Alfred Kuehne Blvd, Building #55

Brampton, Ontario

L6T 4K4, Canada

Notify Party: Delmar International Inc

6399 Cantay Road

Mississauga, Ontario

Canada

L5R 0G4

Ph.: 905-206-1166

Fax: 905-206-9925

Shipment Details: No. of pallets

Weight

Purchase Order No.

Wood Packaging

Declaration: If the shipment contains no solid wood packaging, please indicate

on the Bill of Lading:

“Shipment contains no solid wood packaging material”

If the shipment contains fully marked solid wood packaging,

indicate on the Bill of Lading:

“Shipment contains solid wood packaging materials marked in

accordance with ISPM No. 15”

Please note: For Online DC orders, please indicate Building #50.

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v 8.0 November 2021

9.2.3. INERNATIONAL (AIR & SEA) TRANSPORTATION DOCUMENT REQUIREMENTS

Surrender of ORIGINAL BILL OF LADING for international shipments (AIR & SEA)

• In order for the cargo to be released to Indigo, Delmar requires an original bill of lading or

vendors can arrange a telex release with the Delmar origin offices.

• Indigo prefers that vendors hand in the original bills of lading (surrender) to the local Delmar

origin office and request that origin issue a telex release to Delmar Toronto.

• Failing the above, original bills of lading are to be sent via courier to the attention of:

Delmar International Inc

6399 Cantay Road

Mississauga, Ontario

Canada

L5R 0G4

• The Original Bill of Lading is required to be surrendered to Delmar International within seven

days of vessel departure.

9.2.4. PHYSICAL PRESENTATION REQUIREMENTS

For all physical presentation requirements, including case and pallet labeling, and packaging

(inner/outer cartons/packs, pallets, etc…), please refer to the following two sections of this

manual:

• Case & Pallet Labeling Guideline

• Packaging Guideline

9.3. ROUTING INSTRUCTIONS

• Once your freight is ready, please complete the Freight Notification Form (please refer to

the Appendix Section) as per the procedures indicated in the International Shipments

section to follow. Any questions should be directed to Delmar International (please refer

to the Contacts Section).

• DAP and CIF vendors are also required to complete the Pre-Alert From (please refer to

the Appendix Section), and email it to Delmar International at INDIGOGLOBAL@DELMAR.CA

• If vendors are late in submitting either the Freight Notification Form or the Pre-Alert Form,

a possible delay of the shipment may occur and the product may arrive later than the

expected date (please refer to the submissions timeline on the form). This may result in a

chargeback to the vendor.

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v 8.0 November 2021

9.4. DOMESTIC SHIPMENTS PROCEDURE (ORIGINATING WITHIN CANADA ONLY) – (IF

APPLICABLE)

Once a Purchase Order has been issued, a Freight Notification Form (please refer to the

Appendix Section) must be completed and e-mailed or faxed to Delmar International at

Ind[email protected] as advance notice for pick-up and drop-off at shipping point as

follows:

Ground shipment: min. 3 business days in advance of CHO date (within North America)

Please note: If the expected product completion date is not going to be met, it is the

responsibility of the vendor to advise the Indigo Category Manager as soon as possible.

Upon receipt of the Freight Notification Form (FNF), Delmar International will contact the

vendor directly and provide routing instructions. Please note, in the absence of a prompt

FNF, Delmar may contact the vendor to request the completed form for an upcoming order.

Vendor must complete ALL fields of the freight notification form at the time of making a

booking with Delmar International, including:

• Indigo Purchase Order No.(s)

• Indigo Purchase Order Delivery Date(s)

• Ship-to Location/Address (Destination)

• Mode of Transport

• Shipment QTY

• Weight & cubic measure

All domestic shipments must be accompanied by:

• Bill of Lading (BOL)

• Packing Slip/List

For vendor-controlled freight:

All DAP and DDP vendors are required to contact Indigo’s appointment desk to schedule a

delivery. Please note all shipments require an appointment at either facility (Retail or Online).

All DAP and DDP vendors are required to have their delivery drivers wear Safety Shoes or

Safety toe caps when entering an Indigo Distribution Center (“DC”). This is a Safety

Requirement. Drivers will be refused entry into the Warehouse without Safety Shoes or Toe

Caps. Additional safety requirements may also apply as per protocol at the given time (ie

use of PPE, etc…)

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v 8.0 November 2021

9.5. INTERNATIONAL SHIPMENTS PROCEDURE & ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

(ORIGINATING OUTSIDE OF CANADA, INCLUDING FROM U.S.A)

PROCEDURE

Once a Purchase Order has been issued, a Freight Notification Form (please refer to the

Appendix Section) must be completed and e-mailed or faxed to Delmar International as

advance notice for pick-up and drop-off at shipping point as follows:

a. Ocean shipment: min. 2 weeks in advance of CHO date

b. Air shipment: min. 2 weeks in advance of CHO date (outside North America)

c. Ground shipment: min. of 3 days in advance of CHO date (within North America)

Please note: If the expected product completion date is not going to be met, it is the

responsibility of the vendor to advise the Indigo Category Manager as soon as possible.

For CIF and DAP vendors, a Pre-Alert Form (please refer to the Appendix Section) must be

completed and e-mailed or faxed to Delmar International at INDIGOGLOBAL@DELMAR.CA

For shipments originating within North America, the vendor will be contacted directly by

Delmar International in order to coordinate shipping details; however, it is the vendor’s

responsibility to ensure the Freight Notification Form is submitted on time. Upon receipt of

the form, Delmar International will provide Routing Instructions to the vendor.

Vendor must complete ALL fields of the Freight Notification Form at the time of making a

booking with Delmar International, including:

• Indigo Purchase Order No.(s)

• Indigo Purchase Order Delivery Date(s)

• Ship-To Location Address (Destination)

• Mode of Transport

• Shipment QTY

• Weight & cubic measure

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v 8.0 November 2021

9.5.1. SOLAS REQUIREMENT - VGA DECLARATION

For overseas shipments, as per the new IMO regulation titled Safety of Life at Sea (Solas)

effective as of July 1, 2016, all containers must have a declaration of the Verified Gross

Mass (VGM) of the container (including Tare of the container) or it will not be loaded on

the ship. It is the responsibly of the shipper to supply this information to Delmar

International at the time of making a booking, by filling a SHIPPER VGM DECLARATION

form (either LCL or FCL). Failure to do so could result in delayed shipments and additional

weighing and holding charges, as well as respective non-compliance cost recovery

charges. Please refer to the Appendix section for the IMO notice issue May 23, 2016, and

to Appendix F for the Shipper VGM Declaration forms (LCL/FCL).

There are two acceptable methods to obtain the VGM:

1. weigh the loaded container

2. weigh all the items loaded into the container (including dunnage, securing material,

etc.) and add the tare mass of the container to the sum of those single masses

Delmar will need from the shipper of the cargo the following:

LCL

Upon completion of packaging the shipment for transport the shipper will need to insure

they have an accurate VGM for each booking.

The shipment will need to be weighed on qualified weighing equipment (Qualified Weighing

Equipment is defined as meeting the applicable accuracy standards and requirements of

the State in which the equipment is being used.

You will then need to complete the attached document and submit it to the office with

which you made the booking prior to the cargo being delivered.

This document must be signed by a person employed by your company authorized to sign

the document.

FCL

Method 2:

As above, and add the tare which can be obtained from the imprint on the door of the

container

Complete the attached document and submit it to the office with which you made the

booking, this document should be sent when the loading of the container is complete

and the seal is placed on the container and must be received prior to the container

being delivered to the terminal. Again must be signed by an authorized person

Method 1:

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v 8.0 November 2021

Upon the conclusion of packing and sealing a container and using calibrated and

certified equipment, the shipper may weigh, or have arranged that a third party weigh,

the packed container. SOLAS Regulation, paragraph 4.1; IMO Guidelines, paragraph

5.1.1.

The scale, © weighbridge, lifting equipment or other devices used to verify the gross mass

of the container must meet the applicable accuracy standards and requirements of the

State in which the equipment is being used. IMO Guidelines, paragraph 7.1.

Whichever method is used you must then complete the attached document and submit

it to the office with which you made the booking, this document should be sent when

the loading of the container is complete and the seal is placed on the container and

must be received prior to the container being delivered to the terminal. Again must be

signed by an authorized person

| 05.27.2016 -v.01)

For shipments originating outside of North America, the vendor will be provided with

contact information of Delmar’s local forwarding agent. This local agent will contact the

vendor prior to the product completion date to arrange for collection.

All shipments entering Canada are subject to specific procedures and must be

accompanied by a number of documents. These documents may vary according to the

type of goods being shipped. Adherence to both procedures and proper document

preparation will ensure a smooth transaction eliminating unnecessary and costly delays

at customs.

9.5.2. ORIGINAL CUSTOMS DOCUMENTS

Original Customs Documents must be sent to Delmar International as follows (soft copies are

acceptable via e-mail and can be sent to customsdocscan@delmar.ca :

• For international ocean shipments: the documents must be provided to Delmar not

later than 3 days after departure.

• For air and truck (North America): the documents are required by Delmar prior to

cargo departure.

• Failure to deliver Customs documents on-time will result in late document and

storage/yard movement cost recovery charges as per the Cost Recovery Schedule

For Purchase Orders on Letters of Credit, the original customs documents must be sent to

Indigo’s Appointed Bank prior to the departure of the shipment.

All DAP and DDP vendors are required to contact Indigo’s appointment desk to schedule a

delivery. Please note all shipments require an appointment at either facility (Retail or Online).

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v 8.0 November 2021

All DAP and DDP vendors are required to have their delivery drivers wear Safety Shoes or Safety

Toe Caps when entering any Indigo Distribution Center, as per a Safety Requirement. Drivers will

be refused entry into the Warehouse without Safety Shoes or Toe Caps. Additional safety

requirements may also apply as per protocol at the given time (ie use of PPE, etc…)

9.5.3. CANADIAN CUSTOMS CLEARANCE DOCUMENT REQUIREMENTS

INTERNATIONAL (AIR & SEA) SHIPMENTS:

All shipments entering Canada are subject to specific procedures and must be accompanied

by a number of documents. These documents may vary according to the type of goods being

shipped. Adherence to both procedures and proper document preparation will ensure a

smooth transaction eliminating unnecessary and costly delays at customs.

Requirements:

• Customs Documents must be sent to Delmar International via e-mail and can be sent to

Indigoglobaldocs@delmar.ca

• Email subject line must include Indigo PO# and ocean house bill of lading number.

• Failure to have the Indigo PO# in the subject line and ocean bill of lading number will

result in the documents being rejected.

Timing:

• International OCEAN/SEA shipments: Documents must be provided to Delmar not later

than 3 days after vessel departure.

• International AIR shipments: Documents must be provided to Delmar prior to cargo

departure

• Failure to deliver Customs documents on-time may result in late document and

storage/yard movement compliance chargebacks.

Customs document package to include:

• commercial invoice

• packing slip

• certificate of origin if applicable

• copy of house bill of lading for ocean shipments

• copy house airway bill for air shipments

Commercial invoices must include the following information:

• country of origin

• currency

• complete address of vendor

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v 8.0 November 2021

• Indigo must be shown as importer of record

• date of direct shipment

• PO number(s)

• total Shipment quantity & total unit quantity

• detailed description including UPC #

• unit price & total line value

• Incoterm

• shipments moving under pre-paid terms must show freight value

NORTH AMERICAN (GROUND) SHIPMENTS:

Requirements:

• Customs Documents must be sent to Delmar International via e-mail to [email protected]

• Must be sent a minimum of 3 business days in advance of the CHO date.

• Email subject line must include Indigo PO#

• Failure to have the Indigo PO# in the subject line and ocean bill of lading number will

result in the documents being rejected.

Customs document package to include:

• commercial invoice

• packing slip

• certificate of origin if applicable

Commercial invoices must include the following information:

• country of origin

• currency

• complete address of vendor

• Indigo must be shown as importer of record

• date of direct shipment

• PO numbers(s)

• total Shipment quantity & total unit quantity

• detailed description including UPC #

• unit price & total line value

• Incoterm

- 93 -

v 8.0 November 2021

The table below is not an exhaustive listing of documents but rather the main documents

required for the average import shipment.

Document

International

Shipments

USA

Shipments

Domestic

Shipments

Canada Customs Invoice

required

Commercial Invoice

required

Packing Slip

required

Bill of Lading

required

Form ‘A’ / Exporter’s Statement of Origin (when

applicable)

required

NAFTA Certificate of Origin (when applicable)

required

Wood Packaging Requirements

required

Letters of Credit (if required)

required

Supplier VGM Declaration (applicable to Sea

shipments only)

required

9.5.4. CANADA CUSTOMS INVOICE/COMMERCIAL INVOICE

• For all commercial shipments entering Canada, a Commercial Invoice and/or Canada

Customs Invoice must be supplied. Invoices do not require signatures and may be

photocopies.

• The Commercial Invoice should include both the UPC (Item ID) being shipped, and the HS

Code (Harmonized System Code).

• A copy of a Canada Customs Invoice and instructions for completion can be found in the

Appendix Section.

9.5.5. FORM “A” CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN (FOR SHIPMENTS ORIGINATING OUTSIDE OF

NORTH AMERICA)

• Many countries throughout the world have been accorded a “General Preferential Tariff

(GPT)” by Canada. In order for importers to benefit from lower rates of duty under the GPT (if

applicable), a Form “A” Certificate of Origin or an Exporter’s Statement of Origin is required

for each import of qualifying goods.

• To qualify for GPT treatment, at least 60% of the ex-factory price of the goods packed for

shipment to Canada must originate in one or more GPT countries. As well, the goods must be

shipped directly on a through Bill of Lading to a consignee in Canada from the certified

country. Please note: GPT tariff treatment and related favorable duty rates are scheduled to

be eliminated Jan. 1, 2015.

• It is the sole responsibility of the exporter to determine the origin of the goods being exported

and to provide a valid Certificate/Statement to that effect. It is the importer who benefits

from the lower rates of duty (if applicable) when a Certificate/Declaration is supplied.

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v 8.0 November 2021

• If the exporter fails to complete a Certificate/Statement, all of the applicable duties on the

goods will have to be paid.

• In lieu of the Form “A” Certificate of Origin, an Exporter’s Statement of Origin may be

supplied. The Exporter’s Statement may be placed on the invoice or on a separate sheet

indicating the invoice number.

This statement must read as follows:

Exporter’s Statement of Origin

I certify that the goods described in this invoice or in the attached invoice #___________

were produced in the beneficiary country of __________ and that at least ___ per cent of

the ex-factory price of the goods originates in the beneficiary country/countries

of:_______________________.

_____________________________________

Name and Title

_____________________________________

Corporation name and address

_____________________________________

Telephone and fax numbers

_____________________________________

Signature and date (day/month/year)

The following can be found in the Appendix section:

• A copy of a Form “A” Certificate of Origin

• Instructions for completion

• A list of qualifying countries

9.5.6. NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT (NAFTA) (FOR SHIPMENTS

ORIGINATING WITHIN NORTH AMERICA)

Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), all tariffs between Canada and

the USA have been eliminated as of January 1998. In order to define those goods entitled

to the benefits of lower duty rates, a NAFTA Certificate of Origin or a NAFTA Low Value

Declaration must be made.

9.5.7. NAFTA CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN

• To ensure that only those goods which qualify under the Rules of Origin receive the benefits

of the Agreement, a NAFTA Certificate of Origin (form B232) is required. The data to be

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v 8.0 November 2021

supplied on the Certificate is common for shipments to and from each country within the

Agreement (ie, Canada, USA and Mexico).

• A copy of a NAFTA Certificate of Origin (form B232) can be found in Appendix K.

Instructions for completion can be found in Appendix J.

• It is the sole responsibility of the exporter/producer to determine the origin of the goods

being exported and to provide a valid Certificate to that effect. If the exporter/producer

fails to complete a Certificate, all the applicable duties on the goods will have to be paid.

Exporters/producers who certify goods eligible for NAFTA treatment must keep all

certification related documents for a period of six (6) years.

• Blanket NAFTA certificates can be submitted for multiple shipments of the same goods to the

same importer. The validity period of a blanket certificate in Canada is one (1) year.

9.5.8. NAFTA LOW VALUE DECLARATION:

Certification of shipments to Canada under $1600.00 CDN in value can be performed with an

authorized signature on the commercial invoice (i.e. no Certificate of Origin is required). This

certification attests that the goods comply with origin requirements and that further processing

or assembly has not taken place in a non-originating country.

This statement must read as follows:

NAFTA Low Value Certification

I certify that the goods referenced in this invoice/sales contract originate under the rules of

origin specified for these goods in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and

that further production or any other operation outside the territories of the Parties has not

occurred subsequent to production in the territories

_____________________________________

Name and Title

_____________________________________

Company

_____________________________________

Telephone and fax numbers

_____________________________________

Signature and date (day/month/year)

I am the exporter of the goods ___ or producer of the goods ___.

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SECTION 10 - CONTACTS

1. DISTRIBUTION CENTRES & SHIPPING

MAILING / DELIVERY ADDRESSES

Location

Address

Retail Distribution Centre

100 Alfred Kuehne Boulevard

Building # 55

Brampton, ON, Canada L6T 4K4

Online Distribution Centre

100 Alfred Kuehne Boulevard

Building # 50

Brampton, ON, Canada L6T 4K4

Western Distribution Centre

(Calgary)

5800, 79 Avenue South East,

Unit #10

Calgary, AB, Canada T2C 4S6

HOURS OF OPERATION

Location

Phone

Business Hours

Retail Distribution

Centre

Bus: 905-789-1234

800-974-7381

Sunday 11:00pm– Friday 11:10pm (EST)

Online Distribution

Centre

Bus: 905-789-1234 ext. 2697 or 2689

800-974-7381 ext. 2697 or 2689

Sunday 11:00pm– Friday 11:10pm (EST)

Western

Distribution Centre

(Calgary)

Receiving Office: (403) 523-7657 ext 5370

Security Office: (403) 523-7657 ext 5364

Mon-Friday: 7:00 am - 2:30 pm (GMT)

APPOINTMENT DESK HOURS

Location

Phone

Appointment Desk Hours

Retail & Online

Distribution Centre

Bus: 905-789-1234 ext. 512

800-974-7381 ext. 512

DCinboundappointm[email protected]

Mon-Fri 7:00am - 3:00pm (EST)

(messages left after 12:00pm (noon)

may be returned the following day)

Western

Distribution Centre

(Calgary)

Please submit appointment requests to

CDCapptscheduling@indigo.ca

Mon-Thurs: 7:00 am - 2:30 pm (GMT)

Deliveries will be scheduled Mon-Thurs

from 8:30 am to 6:00 pm (GMT)

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KEY CONTACTS

Inquiry

Contact

Phone

Business Hours

Shipping Inquiries

Routing

• International

• Domestic &

North America

Customs & Brokerage

Pre-Alert Forms

[email protected]

Delmar International

IndigoGlobal@delmar.ca

IndigoNA@delmar.ca

IndigoCustoms@delmar.ca

[email protected]

Fax: 905-206-9925

Fax: 514-636-1212

Fax: 905-206-9925

Monday - Friday

9:00 am – 5:00 pm (EST)

2. VENDOR COMPLIANCE, EDI, MASTER DATA, DROP SHIP

KEY CONTACTS

Inquiry

Contact

Phone

Business Hours

EDI

(Electronic Data

Interchange)

Indigo EDI Support

EDISupport@indigo.ca

InterTrade Customer Support

support@intertrade.com

InterTrade ecCatalogue

[email protected]

1-800-873-

7803

Monday to Friday

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

(EST)

Monday through

Friday, excluding

holidays)

8:30am – 8:00pm

EST

Master Data (PIM)

P[email protected]

Monday to Friday

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

(EST)

Vendor

Onboarding/

Set-up

VendorSetup@indigo.ca

Monday to Friday

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

(EST)

Vendor

Compliance

Chargebacks &

Disputes

VendorCompliance@indigo.ca

logon to the compliance portal

(24/7)

https://Indigo.TraverseSystems.com

Monday to Friday

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

(EST)

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3. QUALITY ASSURANCE, SUSTAINABILITY, DEI & ETHICAL SOURCING

KEY CONTACTS

Inquiry

Contact

Phone

Business Hours

Senior Manager,

Product Quality

Sustainability & Ethical

Sourcing

Diversity, Equity &

Inclusion (DEI)

Kitty Tang

ktang@indigo.ca

Geoff Suares

GSuares@indigo.ca

Madeleine

Lowenborg-Frick

[email protected]

Monday to Friday

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

(EST)

4. ACCOUNTS PAYABLE

KEY CONTACTS

Inquiry

Contact

Phone

Business Hours

Accounts Payable

A/P - Invoice

Payment

Attention to:

General

Merchandise:

(Toys, Gifts,

Games, Paper

Product)

Consignment

Music,

Entertainment,

Videos/DVD and

Electronics

A/P Dept.

100 Alfred Kuehne

Boulevard

Building # 55

Brampton, ON, Canada

L6T 4K4

Sharon Garzon

SHARON_G@INDIGO.CA

Barbara Kozimor

[email protected]

Genieve Carridice

GCARRIDICE@INDIGO.CA

Monday to Friday

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

(EST)

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SECTION 11 – APPENDICES

A. WOOD PACKAGING REQUIREMENTS

Wood Packaging Requirements (for Import Vendors only)

• All wooden pallets coming into Canada must conform to the Canadian Food Inspection

Agency (“CFIA”) standards.

• Canada’s wood packaging import regulations adhere to the principles of “ISPM No. 15:

Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging Material in International Trade” as issued in

March 2002 by the International Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures of the

International Plant Protection Convention.

• Importations of non-manufactured wood treated by heat treatment process (Kiln Drying)

will only be allowed from countries which have had their monitoring program (heat

treatment verification system) pre-approved by CFIA.

• Importations containing wood packaging that does not meet ISPM No. 15 standards will

be refused entry into Canada and must be returned to the country of export at the

supplier’s expense.

• Shipments arriving in North America from Offshore

• Proof of Treatment

• Upon import, proof of treatment (copy of the International Plant Protection Convention

(“IPPC”) Stamp Coding) is required to gain release from the appropriate Plant Protection

Organization of Canada, USA or Mexico.

• The IPPC symbol for treated wood packaging materials (as per Annex II of the

"International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures #15: Guidelines for Regulating Wood

packaging materials Material in International Trade"):

• Where XX represents the International Standards Organization two letter country code for

the country in which the wood packaging is produced and 000 represents the official

certification number issued to the facility producing the compliant wood packaging by

the National Plant Protection Organization and YY represents the treatment carried out

(e.g. HT for heat treated wood or MB for methyl bromide treated wood).

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1. EXCEPTIONS

• There are no exceptions to the policy. Non-compliant wood packaging will be ordered

“removed from Canada”. Upon request, and approval by Customs, the non-compliant

wood packaging may be separated from the shipment at an approved facility.

• All costs (cartage, unloading, reloading, fumigation of non-compliant materials,

destruction of materials, cartage back to Customs) will be the responsibility of the entity in

care and control of the shipment. Note, this is a potential option only and circumstances

will be reviewed by Customs on a case-by-case basis.

2. SHIPMENTS ARRIVING IN CANADA FROM USA

• Wood packaging manufactured from wood of USA origin that has not moved

internationally is exempt from the treatment and marking requirements of Canadian

wood packaging import regulations.

• There are no requirements for treatments, marking or declaration for shipments imported

into Canada from the USA. Shipments moving through the USA for ultimate destination in

Canada are subject to full International regulations.

3. SHIPMENTS ARRIVING IN USA/CANADA FROM MEXICO

• The same regulations for Shipments to North America from Offshore apply to all imports

into Canada/USA from Mexico.

4. EXPORTER DECLARATIONS

No Solid Wood Packaging

• If the shipment contains no solid wood packaging a "declaration" should be stated on the

bill of lading to alert Customs/Agriculture and potentially avoid unnecessary inspections,

for example “Shipment contains no solid wood packaging materials – pallets used are

plywood”

Marked Wood Packaging

• If the shipment contains fully marked solid wood packaging, a declaration should be

provided on the bill of lading to state “Shipment contains solid wood packaging materials

marked in accordance with ISPM No. 15”.

• Detailed wood packaging information can be found at HTTP://WWW.INSPECTION.GC.CA

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B. QA REQUIREMENTS

Indigo Test Request Forms

Hard Lines Test Request Form

Test Request Form - Garment and Textiles

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Test Request Form - Toy & Juvenile Products

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v 8.0 November 2021

Drop Test Procedures

The following describes the procedures for performing a drop test for protective packaging

according to ISTA-1A standards.

Carton Drop Test consists of a ‘10-drop sequence test.’ Package weight cannot

exceed 40 lb. The test consists of a series of ten free-fall drops from heights that vary

with weight as follows:

Imperial

Metric

Package

Weight

Drop

Height

Package

Weight

Drop

Height

1 – 75 lb.

30 inches

1 – 34 Kg

76 cm

76 – 100 lb.

24 inches

35 – 45 Kg

61 cm

The test must be performed in following order:

1. Most fragile corner, if not known, at the carton manufacturer's joint

2. Shortest edge radiating from that corner

3. Medium edge radiating from that corner

4. Longest edge radiating from that corner

5. Flat on one of the smallest faces

6. Flat on the opposite small face

7. Flat on one of the medium faces

8. Flat on the opposite medium face

9. Flat on one of the largest faces

10. Flat on the opposite largest face

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ALLERGEN CHECKLIST FOR FOOD SUPPLIERS & MANUFACTURERS (SAMPLE ONLY)

ALLERGEN CHECKLIST FOR

FOOD SUPPLIERS AND MANUFACTURERS

Original Form □ Amended Form □

Product Name: ___________________________________________ UPC # ______________________________

Complete the following table for each product. Column I indicates the allergens that may be found

in the product, from addition or cross-contamination. Column II indicates the allergens present in

other products that are run on the same equipment but at a different time. Column III indicates

whether any allergens are present in your plant.

Fill in each cell of the table with a YES or a NO and, when applicable, include the name of the

ingredient.

DO NOT LEAVE ANY CELLS BLANK.

Component

Column I

Present in

the product

Column II

Present in other

products

manufactured on

the same line

Column III

Present in

the same

manufacturing

plant

Peanut or its derivatives, e.g., Peanut - pieces, protein, oil, butter, flour,

and mandelona nuts (an almond flavoured peanut product) etc. Peanut

may also be known as ground nut.

Tree Nuts (almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts (filberts), macadamia

nuts, pecans, pine nuts (pinyon, pinon), pistachios and walnuts or their

derivatives, e.g., nut butters and oils etc.

Sesame or its derivatives, e.g., paste and oil etc.

Milk or its derivatives, e.g., milk caseinate, whey and yogurt powder etc.

Eggs or its derivatives, e.g., frozen yolk, egg white powder and egg

protein isolates etc.

Fish or its derivatives, e.g., fish protein, oil and extracts etc.

Crustaceans (including crab, crayfish, lobster, prawn and shrimp) and

Shellfish (including snails, clams, mussels, oysters, cockle and scallops)

or their derivative, e.g., extracts etc.

Soy or its derivatives, e.g., lecithin, oil, tofu and protein isolates etc.

Wheat, triticale or their derivatives, e.g., flour, starches and brans etc.

Includes other wheat varieties such as spelt, durum, kamut, emmer etc.

and includes all gluten sources.

Mustard or its derivatives, e.g., mustard seeds, mustard flour, ground

mustard, prepared mustard etc.

Sulphites, e.g., sulphur dioxide and sodium metabisulphites etc. (if YES,

indicate amount ppm)

Others (as considered necessary)

Do you have procedures to avoid cross-contamination of the product with the allergens not present

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v 8.0 November 2021

in the product but noted in columns II and III? Yes No (If yes, describe procedures on

back or on separate page.)

Attach a finished product label to this form for each product. If, for any reason, there are any

modifications to this product, you are responsible for updating your records including labels and

specifications, and notifying us immediately.

Vendor Name: ________________________________________________________________________

Vendor Address: ______________________________________________________________________

Manufacturing Facility Name: ____________________________________________________________

Manufacturing Facility Address: __________________________________________________________

This form has been completed by responsible technical staff, as indicated by the undersigned:

Name: _______________________ Signature: _____________________________ Date:

__________________

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v 8.0 November 2021

Certificate of insurance (COI) requirements matrix – by product type

MERCHANDISE

CATEGORY

PRODUCT CATEGORY

INSURANCE

LIMIT

PAPER

BOOK ACCESSORIES - BOOK LIGHTS

$1M

PAPER

BOOK ACCESSORIES - BOOK MARKS

$1M

PAPER

CALENDARS

$1M

PAPER

DIY CRAFT KITS (DÉCOR, TIE DYE, ETC.)

$1M

PAPER

GADGETS & TOOLS (electric)

$1M

PAPER

GADGETS & TOOLS (non-elec)

$1M

PAPER

GIFT WRAP - GIFT BAGS, WRAPPING PAPER, GIFT TAGS, BOWS, RIBBON

$1M

PAPER

HOME - OFFICE FURNITURE

$1M

PAPER

HOME - OFFICE FURNITURE (adult, non-electric)

$1M

PAPER

JOURNALS / AGENDAS/ PLANNERS

$1M

PAPER

LAP DESKS

$1M

PAPER

NOVELTY GIFTS & ACCESSORIES (non-electric)

$1M

PAPER

OFFICE - ACCESSORIES & SUPPLIES (Eg. PAPERCLIPS, STAPLER, TACKS,

SCISSORS, ETC…)

$1M

PAPER

OFFICE - DESKTOP GAMES & OBJECTS (Eg DOCUMENT TRAY, PEN HOLDER,

PAPERWEIGHT, BOOKENDS, ETC)

$1M

PAPER

PAPER - GREETING CARDS

$1M

PAPER

PAPER - NOTEBOOKS

$1M

PAPER

PAPER - NOTEPADS

$1M

PAPER

PAPER - RECIPE BINDER/BOX/CARDS

$1M

PAPER

PAPER - SKETCHBOOKS

$1M

PAPER

PAPER - STATIONERY

$1M

PAPER

PARTYWARE - DECORATIONS & ACCESSORIES

$1M

PAPER

PARTYWARE - PAPER PLATES, NAPKINS, CUPS, DECORATIONS

$1M

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PAPER

PHOTO ALBUMS

$1M

PAPER

WRITING TOOLS (PENS, MARKERS,PENCILS, SHARPENERS, INK, ETC...)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL & ACCESSORIES (ADULT)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL & ACCESSORIES (ADULT) - BELTS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL & ACCESSORIES (ADULT) - COLD WEATHER

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL & ACCESSORIES (ADULT)- SOCKS & SLIPPERS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - FOOTWEAR

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - HATS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - MATERNITY

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - PAJAMAS & SLIPPERS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - ROBES/SHAWLS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - SLEEP ESSENTIALS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

APPAREL (ADULT) - SLEEP MASKS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

ART - PAINTINGS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

ART - PRINTS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - BACKPACK

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - COSMETIC/TOILETRY BAGS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - CROSSBODY

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - DIAPER BAG

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - HANDBAGS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - LAPTOP

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - LUNCH BAGS/TOTES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - TOTES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - TRAVEL & LUGGAGE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAGS - WALLETS/CASES/POUCHES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

BAKEWARE (non-electric)

$1M

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LIFESTYLE

BATTERIES - ELECTRIC/ RECHARGEABLE/ PORTABLE BATTERY PACKS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

CAMERAS/ CAMCORDERS/ ACCESSORIES (electric/rechargeable)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

CDs/DVDs/VINYL RECORDS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

EYEWEAR - READING GLASSES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

EYEWEAR- SUNGLASSES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

GRILLING - BARBEQUE (NON-PROPANE) , TOOLS & ACCESSORIES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HAIR - ACCESSORIES (excluding baby & kids)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOLIDAY DÉCOR/ ORNAMENTS/ NOVELTY - ELECTRIC/LIGHTS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOLIDAY DÉCOR/ ORNAMENTS/ NOVELTY (non-elect, non-

fragile/breakable)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOLIDAY DÉCOR/ ORNAMENTS/ NOVELTY (non-fragile/breakable)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - BAR CARTS & ACCESSORIES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - BEDDING (SHEETS, LINENS, PILLOW COVERS)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - CANDLE ACCESSORIES (ie Candleholders)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - CANDLES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - CANDLES & INCENSE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - CANDLES (FLAMELESS/electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - COFFEE BREWING & ACCESSORIES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - COOKWARE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - BASKETS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - BLANKETS (electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - CLOCKS (non-elec)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - DIGITAL PHOTO FRAMES (electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - FRAMED ART

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - FRAMES (non-elec)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - MESSAGE BOARDS

$1M

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LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - MIRRORS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - OUTDOOR & GARDEN (tools, electric, organic…)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - OUTDOOR & GARDEN ACCESSORIES (non-elec)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - PILLOWS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - SHELVING

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - THROWS & BLANKETS (non-electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - WALL DECALS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DECOR - WALL DÉCOR (non-elec)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DIFFUSERS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DIFFUSERS (non-electric, no use of essential oil)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DINNERWARE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DISHWARE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - DRAPERY & BLINDS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - ESSENTIAL OILS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - FOOD PREPARATION

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - FOOD STORAGE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - FURNITURE (non-baby & non-electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - GLASSWARE

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - GLASSWARE - PITCHERS/DECANTERS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - GLASSWARE & BAR

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - KITCHEN ACCESSORIES & UTENSILS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - LAMPS & LIGHTING

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - MATTRESSES (non-baby)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - OUTDOOR FURNITURE (non-baby & non-electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - SERVEWARE - OUTDOOR

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - SERVEWARE - TEA POTS & CUPS

$1M

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LIFESTYLE

HOME - SERVEWARE - TEA/COFFEE ACCESSORIES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - SERVEWEAR

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - SMALL APPLIANCES & UTENSILS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - SMALL DECOR ITEMS (non-elec)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - STORAGE & ORGANIZATION

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - TABLE LINENS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - TABLEWARE/ CUTLERY (non-elec)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOME - TOWELS & LINENS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

HOUESEWARES (electric)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

JEWELLERY (excluding infant & kids)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

JEWELLERY ORGANIZERS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

MUGS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

MUGS - TRAVEL

$1M

LIFESTYLE

PET - APPAREL

$1M

LIFESTYLE

PET - TOYS & ACCESSORIES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

SMALL ACCESSORIES - KEYCHAINS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

SUMMER - BEACH TOWELS & OUTDOOR BLANKETS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

TRAVEL ACCESSORIES (Ex. LUGGAGE TAGS, PACKING CUBES, TRAVEL KITS,

ETC.)

$1M

LIFESTYLE

UMBRELLAS

$1M

LIFESTYLE

WATER BOTTLES

$1M

WELLNESS

CLEANING PRODUCTS

$1M

WELLNESS

HEALTH & WELLNESS - HOT WATER BOTTLES

$1M

WELLNESS

HEALTH, FITNESS & WELLNESS MONITORS

$1M

WELLNESS

HOME - FRAGRANCE (non-candle, non-electric)

$1M

WELLNESS

HOME - HUMIDIFIER (non-baby/kids)

$1M

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WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - FRAGRANCE/PERFUME (ADULT USE ONLY - non-

medicinal)

$1M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - HAIR - SHAMPOO/ HAIRCARE (ADULT USE ONLY - non-

medicinal)

$1M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - LIP CARE (ADULT USE ONLY - non-medicinal)

$1M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - LOTIONS/OILS (ADULT USE ONLY - non-medicinal, no

retinol, non-serums)

$1M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - MAKEUP (ADULT USE ONLY - non-medicinal, no retinol,

non-serums)

$1M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - PRE-NATAL - LOTIONS/OILS (ADULT USE ONLY - non-

medicinal)

$1M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - SOAPS/BODYWASH/SALTS (ADULT USE ONLY - non-

medicinal)

$1M

WELLNESS

WELLNESS - FITNESS, YOGA, PILATES & MEDITATION ACCESSORIES

$1M

WELLNESS

WELLNESS - FITNESS, YOGA, PILATES, MEDITATION EQUIPMENT

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - AUDIO

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - CHARGERS & CABLES

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - DRIVES/ STORAGE/ COMPUTER ACCESSORIES

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - eREADER CASES

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - eREADER LIGHTS

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - eREADERS

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - FITNESS BANDS, TRACKERS & WEARABLES

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - GAMING & ACCESSORIES

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - GAMING CONSOLE

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - HOME AUTOMATION

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - HOME NETWORKING

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - HOME SECURITY

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - HOME THEATRE

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - LAPTOPS

$1M

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ELECTRONICS

TECH - MEDIA PLAYER

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - MUSIC

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - PHONE CASES

$1M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - SMART APPLIANCES

$1M

GAMES/ADULT

ADULT - ART & CRAFT - FASHION, DESIGN KITS, SUPPLIES

$1M

GAMES/ADULT

ADULT - ART & CRAFT KITS (Eg. ARTISTIC PAINTS & BRUSHES, SKETCHING &

DRAWING, CALLIGRAPHY, EASELS)

$1M

GAMES/ADULT

ADULT - ART & CRAFT KITS (Eg. KNITTING, NEEDLEPOINT, DIY KITS, ETC.)

$1M

GAMES/ADULT

ADULT - GAMES - BOARDGAMES (battery operated)

$1M

GAMES/ADULT

ADULT - GAMES - BOARDGAMES (non-battery operated)

$1M

GAMES/ADULT

ADULT - GAMES - PUZZLES

$1M

LIFESTYLE

GRILLING - BARBEQUE (PROPANE)

$2M

LIFESTYLE

JEWELLERY - KIDS

$2M

LIFESTYLE

OUTDOOR FIREPITS & HEATERS

$2M

LIFESTYLE

PET - FOOD/TREATS

$2M

GOURMET

BEVERAGE - SODAS, JUICES, HOT CHOCOLATE MIX, BOTTLED WATER, ETC.

$2M

GOURMET

BEVERAGE - TEA/COFFEE & ACCOMPANIEMENTS

$2M

GOURMET

FOOD/CONFECTIONERY

$2M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE - ORAL CARE

$2M

WELLNESS

PERSONAL CARE & WELLNESS PRODUCTS (internal use)

$2M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - KIDS - ELECTRONICS

$2M

ELECTRONICS

TECH - KIDS AUDIO

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - APPAREL, FOOTWEAR, COSTUMES, HAIR ACCESSORIES

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - BAGS - KIDS BACKPACKS & LUNCH BAGS

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - BAGS,BACKPACKS & LUNCH BAGS

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - BATH, TOYS, ACCESSORIES

$2M

- 113 -

v 8.0 November 2021

KIDS

KIDS - BEDDING

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - FURNITURE

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - LUNCH CONTAINERS

$2M

KIDS

KIDS - ROOM DÉCOR

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - ART & CRAFT KITS

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - ART & CRAFT SUPPLIES & ACCESSORIES

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - DOLL FURNITURE

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - EDUCATIONAL TOYS

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - GAMES - BOARDGAMES

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - GAMES - PUZZLES

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - INDOOR ACTIVITIES

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - LOOT BAG ITEMS/TOYS

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - PRESCHOOL TOYS

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - PRETEND PLAY

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - TECH TOYS

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - TOYS

$2M

TOYS

KIDS - TOYS - DRESS-UP

$2M

TOYS

KIDS CREATIVITY & KITS

$2M

TOYS

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - COLLECTIBLES

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - DOLL CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - DOLLHOUSES & PLAYSETS

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - DOLLS

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - FIGURINES

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - OUTDOOR GAMES

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - PLUSH

$2M

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v 8.0 November 2021

TOYS

TOYS - PRESCHOOL

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - REMOTE CONTROLLED/CARS (batteries)

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - REMOTE CONTROLLED/DRONES (batteries)

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - ROBOTICS (batteries)

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - SCIENCE & DISCOVERY

$2M

TOYS

TOYS - WOODEN

$2M

BABY

BABY - NURSING & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - TOYS - EARLY DEVELOPMENT

$5M

BABY

BABY - ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - APPAREL, FOOTWEAR, HATS, HEADWARE, BIBS, COSTUMES, HAIR

ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - BATH TUBS & POTTIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - BEDDING & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - BLANKETS

$5M

BABY

BABY - CARRIERS & WRAPS

$5M

BABY

BABY - CHANGE STATIONS & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - CRIBS/BASSINETS/CHANGE TABLES/GLIDERS/FURNITURE

$5M

BABY

BABY - DIAPERS & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - FEEDING & DISHWARE

$5M

BABY

BABY - FOOD PREPARATION & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - FRAMES (non-electric) & KEEPSAKE BOOKS

$5M

BABY

BABY - GEAR - CAR SEATS & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - GEAR - PORTABLE BEDS & PLAYARDS

$5M

BABY

BABY - GEAR - STROLLERS & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - HIGHCHAIRS, BOOSTERS, SEATS

$5M

BABY

BABY - MATTRESSES

$5M

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v 8.0 November 2021

BABY

BABY - NURSERY DÉCOR

$5M

BABY

BABY - NURSING & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - PJS & SLEEPSACKS

$5M

BABY

BABY - PLAYTIME & TOYS

$5M

BABY

BABY - RIDE ON TOYS

$5M

BABY

BABY - SAFETY - GATES & PROOFING

$5M

BABY

BABY - SAFETY - MONITORS

$5M

BABY

BABY - SHAMPOO, SOAPS, OILS, CREAMS

$5M

BABY

BABY - SKINCARE & HEALTH

$5M

BABY

BABY - SOUNDS MACHINES & NIGHTLIGHTS

$5M

BABY

BABY - STEP STOOLS & POTTY CHAIRS

$5M

BABY

BABY - SWIMWEAR & ACCESSORIES

$5M

BABY

BABY - SWINGS/BOUNCERS/WALKERS/JUMPERS

$5M

BABY

BABY - TEETHING & PACIFIERS

$5M

BABY

BABY - TOWELS & WASHCLOTH

$5M

BABY

BABY - TOYS - BATH

$5M

BABY

BABY - TOYS - EARLY DEVELOPMENT

$5M

BABY

BABY - TOYS - SENSORY

$5M

BABY

BABY & TODDLER TOYS

$5M

BABY

JEWELLERY - INFANT

$5M

KIDS

KIDS - MEALTIME - UTENSILS, ACCESSORIES, WATER BOTTLES

$5M

KIDS

KIDS - PROTECTIVE GEAR (excludig HELMETS (separate category))

$5M

KIDS

KIDS - SHAMPOO, SOAPS, OILS, CREAMS

$5M

KIDS

SPORTING GOODS - ACCESSORIES (non-protective)

$5M

KIDS

SPORTS EQUIPMENT (INDOOR/OUTDOOR/GEAR/BIKES/SKATEBOARDS,

ETC…)

$5M

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v 8.0 November 2021

TOYS

KIDS - LARGE TOYS

$5M

TOYS

KIDS - RIDE-ON TOYS/ BICYCLES/ TRICYCLES/ SCOOTERS/ SKATEBOARD/

SKATES

$5M

TOYS

KIDS - SAND & WATER TOYS

$5M

TOYS

POOL ACCESSORIES (NOODLES, INFLATABLES, FLOATIES, ETC…)

$5M

TOYS

TOYS - OUTDOOR PLAY STRUCTURES (swing sets, large trampolines, large

bouncers, etc…)

$5M

TOYS

TOYS - SEASONAL

$5M

TOYS

TOYS - SUMMER

$5M

TOYS

TOYS - TENTS & TUNNELS

$5M

TOYS

TOYS - VEHICLES

$5M

TOYS

TOYS - WINTER OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

$5M

LIFESTYLE

ADULT - ELECTRIC SCOOTERS & BICYCLES

$5M

KIDS

SAFETY GEAR (i.e. helmets,…)

$10M

WELLNESS

SPECIALTY HEALTH & WELLNESS DEVICES (ie brain stimulation, etc...as

required)

$10M

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v 8.0 November 2021

FNF- OCEAN/AIR

FREIGHT NOTIFICATION FORM

Ocean & Air Freight Requests to be completed by the Vendor 2 weeks prior to shipping.

Final consignee box must be checked off, along with final Destination Calgary or Toronto.

Please submit completed form as follows:

For International (Ocean & Air): [email protected] ; FAX: 905-206-9925

Date of Notification: _________

Vendor:

Consignee: (Please select one)

 Indigo Books & Music Retail Distribution

Centre

100 Alfred Kuehne Blvd

Building # 55

Brampton, ON L6T4K4

 Indigo Books & Music Online Distribution

Centre

100 Alfred Kuehne Blvd

Building # 50 Brampton, ON L6T4K4

 Indigo Calgary Distribution Centre

5800-79 Avenue Southeast, Unit 10

Calgary, AB, T2C 4S6 Canada

Shipper (if different from Vendor):

Indigo P.O. Number(s):

Final Destination:

Contact:

Telephone:

Fax:

Email:

P.O. Completion Date: (Cargo ready date)

PO Due Date into the Indigo DC: (date of

delivery at Indigo)

Total Number of Pallets/Cases/Units:

Total Weight: __________ kg

Palletized Floor Loaded

Shipment Volume: _____________ m

Freight Terms:

EXW FOB FCA

Name of Origin Port/ Terminal: (if FOB/FCA)

Mode of Transport:

Equipment Required:

Ocean LCL Ocean FCL Air

20’ 40’ 40’ High Cube

45’ Special Equipment

- 118 -

v 8.0 November 2021

Commodity Description/Special Handling:

IMPORTANT

This document is to be filled out by ALL Vendors shipping goods destined for Indigo Books &

Music Inc. (“Indigo”). If the expected product completion date is not going to be met, it is the

responsibility of the Vendor to advise the revised date as soon as possible.

For all shipments where Indigo is responsible for freight, shipments will be arranged by Delmar

International.

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v 8.0 November 2021

FNF- GROUND

- 120 -

v 8.0 November 2021

PRE-ALERT FORM

Pre-Alert to be completed by CIF and DAP Vendors Only

Please email the completed document to Delmar International at

IndigoGlobalDOcs@delmar.ca or fax at (905) 206- 9925

Date of Notification :________________

Vendor:

Contact:

Telephone:

Fax:

Email:

Consignee: (Please select one)

 Indigo Books & Music Retail Distribution Centre

100 Alfred Kuehne Blvd

Building # 55

Brampton, ON L6T4K4

 Indigo Books & Music Online Distribution Centre

100 Alfred Kuehne Blvd

Building # 50

Brampton, ON L6T4K4

 Indigo Calgary Distribution Centre

5800-79 Avenue Southeast, Unit 10

Calgary, AB, T2C 4S6 Canada

Shipper (if different from Vendor):

Indigo P.O. Number(s):

Contact:

Telephone:

Fax:

Email:

ETD (Expected Time of Departure):

ETA (Expected Time of Arrival):

Vessel Name & Voyage:

Container No.(s):

Total Number of Pallets/Cases/Units:

Total Weight: _____________ kg

Palletized Floor Loaded

Shipment Volume: _____________ m

Freight Terms: (if CIF/DAP, name port/terminal)

CIF DAP

Mode of Transport:

Carrier Name & Contact:

Ocean LCL Ocean FCL Air

Truck LTL Truck FTL

Commodity Description/Special Handling:

IMPORTANT

This document is to be filled out by ALL Vendors shipping goods destined for Indigo Books & Music Inc.

(“Indigo”) and the shipper is responsible for freight charges.

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v 8.0 November 2021

IMO SOLAS REGULATION & SHIPPER VGM DECLARATION FORMS

- 122 -

v 8.0 November 2021

* Mandatory fields

SHIPPER VGM DECLARATION (LCL)

*Shipper/Manufacturer Company Name:

*Submission date:

*Address:

*Signature of shipper’s authorized contact:

*Authorized VGM contact:

Phone:

Fax:

E-Mail:

*Seller

Same as Manufacturer (Supplier)

(Defined as the name and address of the last

known entity by whom the merchandise is sold

or is agreed to be sold)

*Address:

Phone:

Fax:

Email:

*Delmar Booking number:

*Delmar origin office:

*Address:

*Contact Person:

*Carrier booking number:

Shipper invoice number:

Place of receipt:

Shipper P/O number:

Port of Departure:

Name of booked vessel:

Port of Discharge:

Voyage number:

Final Destination:

ETD / ETA:

Freight Terms:

Container number:

*Verified Gross Mass (VGM)

Marks & numbers

*In KG (Kilograms):

*No.& Kind of Pkg:

Description of Goods:

For bookings of multiple container please

complete and sign (Annex A)

Method 1 (by weighing)

VGM evaluation method:

(Please mark with “X”)

After a shipment has been completely

packed, the shipment can be weighed by

regular equipment (Scales, fork lift scales,

crane scales, etc.).

Must meet national certification and

calibration requirements.

Method 2 (by calculation)

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v 8.0 November 2021

All packages and cargo items may be

weighted individually, incl. mass of dunnage,

packing and securing material and added to

Tare weight of the container (Tare weight for

FCL shipment only).

The duly authorized contact person of the shipper hereby certifies, that the above mentioned

shipment details are correct and consistent with the requirements of the International

Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), Chapter VI, part A Regulation 2. This Verified

Gross Mass statement contains the VGM per container for FCL cargo or per shipment (for LCL

cargo). Amendments, updates and/or corrections to the verified and declared weights have to

be communicated and submitted to the responsible Delmar Ocean Freight department at least

three days prior scheduled vessel departure.

Incorrect and/or belated VGM statements may result in non-acceptance of the shipment by the

vessel operator and a delay in the originally planned schedule. Any additional cost caused by

delay due to non-acceptance of the shipment by the carrier, will be at shipper’s (VGM

declaring party) expense.

VGM DECLARAITON (LCL) | Page - 123 - of 143 | 05.20.2016 -

v.01

* Mandatory fields

SHIPPER VGM DECLARATION (FCL)

*Shipper/Manufacturer Company Name:

*Submission date:

*Address:

*Signature of shipper’s authorized contact:

*Authorized VGM contact:

Phone:

Fax:

E-Mail:

*Seller

Same as Manufacturer (Supplier)

(Defined as the name and address of the last

known entity by whom the merchandise is sold

or is agreed to be sold)

*Address:

Phone:

Fax:

Email:

*Delmar origin office:

*Delmar Booking number:

*Address:

*Contact Person:

*Carrier booking number:

Shipper invoice number:

Place of receipt:

- 124 -

v 8.0 November 2021

Shipper P/O number:

Port of Departure:

Name of booked vessel:

Port of Discharge:

Voyage number:

Final Destination:

ETD / ETA:

Freight Terms:

Container number:

*Verified Gross Mass (VGM)

Seal number (if applicable):

*In KG (Kilograms):

*No. Of Container:

Description of Goods:

For bookings of multiple container please

complete and sign (Annex A)

Method 1 (by weighing)

VGM evaluation method:

(Please mark with “X”)

After a shipment has been completely packed,

the shipment can be weighed by regular

equipment (Scales, fork lift scales, crane scales,

etc.).

Must meet national certification and calibration

requirements.

Method 2 (by calculation)

All packages and cargo items may be weighted

individually, incl. mass of dunnage, packing and

securing material and added to Tare weight of

the container (Tare weight for FCL shipment

only).

The duly authorized contact person of the shipper hereby certifies, that the above mentioned

shipment details are correct and consistent with the requirements of the International Convention

for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), Chapter VI, part A Regulation 2. This Verified Gross Mass

statement contains the VGM per container for FCL cargo or per shipment (for LCL cargo).

Amendments, updates and/or corrections to the verified and declared weights have to be

communicated and submitted to the responsible Delmar Ocean Freight department at least

three days prior scheduled vessel departure.

Incorrect and/or belated VGM statements may result in non-acceptance of the shipment by the

vessel operator and a delay in the originally planned schedule. Any additional cost caused by

delay due to non-acceptance of the shipment by the carrier, will be at shipper’s (VGM declaring

party) expense.

Page - 124 - of 143 | 05.20.2016 -v.01

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v 8.0 November 2021

SHIPPER VGM DECLARATION (FCL) ANNEX A

FOR BOOKINGS WITH MULTIPLE CONTAINERS

Delmar Booking number:

Shipper name:

Shipper address:

Carrier booking number:

Vessel name:

Voyage number:

ETD:

Container #

Seal #

VGM (kg)

*Signature of shipper’s authorized

contact:

Submission date:

VGM DECLARAITON _ANNEX-A (FCL) | Page - 125 - of 143 | 05.20.2016 -v.01

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v 8.0 November 2021

CANADA CUSTOMS INVOICE – COMPLETION INSTRUCTIONS

Below is a brief description of how each required data field on the Canada Customs Invoice

must be completed. The data field name as shown on the Canada Customs Invoice is in bold

face, followed by some equivalent commercial terms in parenthesis.

Field No. 1 Vendor (seller, sold by, remit to, consignor, shipper):

Must indicate the name and address of:

(a) the person selling the goods to the purchaser, or

(b) the person consigning the goods to Canada.

Field No. 2 Date of Direct Shipment to Canada:

Must display the date on which the goods began their continuous journey to

Canada.

Field No. 3 Other References:

Enter the Purchase Order Number or an equivalent number that can easily be

linked back to the order in your system.

Field No. 4 Consignee (ship to, deliver to):

Must indicate the name and address of the person (company) in Canada to

whom the goods are shipped.

Field No. 5 Purchaser (if other than consignee) (sold to, buyer):

The person to whom the goods are sold by the vendor:

Indigo Books & Music Inc.

100 Alfred Kuehne Blvd, Building #55

Brampton, Ontario

L6T 4K4, Canada

Business No.: 897152666-RM0001

Field No. 6 Country of Transhipment:

The country through which the goods were shipped in transit to Canada under

Customs control. If the shipment is from the USA indicate “n/a” in this field.

Field No. 7 Country of Origin:

For Customs purposes, the country of origin of invoiced goods is the country

where the goods are grown, produced or manufactured. The country of origin

must be stated for each item on the invoice.

Field No. 8 Transportation (Give Mode and Place of Direct Shipment to Canada)

Indicate the mode of transportation used and the place from which the goods

began their uninterrupted journey to Canada. This field should also contain the

statement “For Customs Clearance contact Indigo’s appointed Freight Forwarder

and Customs Broker”

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v 8.0 November 2021

Field No. 9 Conditions of Sale and Terms of Payment:

Must describe the terms and the conditions agreed upon by the vendor and the

purchaser [example: Free Carrier (FCA) Carriage Paid To (CPT), Carriage and

Insurance Paid(CIP), Delivered Duty Paid (DDP), Delivered at Place (DAP), etc.].

Field No. 10 Currency of Settlement

Indicate the currency in which the vendor's demand for payment is made.

Form No. 11 Number of Packages:

Indicate the number of packages.

Form No. 12 Specification of Commodities:

The following information must be provided:

(a) Kind of Packages — Indicate the nature of the packages (e.g., cases, etc.).

(b) General Description and Characteristics — Give in general terms, description

of the merchandise (e.g. ceramic dinnerware, children’s clothing, etc.).

commercial terms (i.e. enter the products item number).

(d) Harmonized System Classification Number – indicate the ten-digit Canadian

or six-digit International classification.

Field No. 13 Quantity:

The quantity of each item included in the description field must be indicated in

the appropriate unit of measure.

Field No. 14 Unit Price (price per article, item amount):

Must provide a value in the currency of settlement (as defined under Field 10) for

each item described in the description field.

Field No. 15 Total:

Indicate the price paid or payable in the currency of settlement (as defined

under Field 10) for the number of items recorded in the quantity field when they

were sold by the vendor to the purchaser. Where there is no price paid or

payable for the items recorded in the description field, “n/a” should be

indicated. Should “n/a” be indicated in this field the statement “Value for

Customs purposes only $__________” or “Value included in above invoice

amount” must be shown.

Field No. 16 Total Weight:

Show both net and gross weight.

Field No. 17 Invoice Total (total value, pay this amount):

The total price paid or payable for goods described on the invoice and/or

continuation sheet(s) if used. This field must reflect the actual value “price

payable” of the transaction between the buyer and the vendor.

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v 8.0 November 2021

Field No. 18 Commercial Invoice:

Enter the attached commercial invoice number if applicable.

Field No. 19 Exporter (name and address), if other than vendor:

Indicate the name and address of the person or organization shipping the goods

to the consignee/purchaser.

Field No. 20 Originator (name and address):

Where the invoice is completed on behalf of a company, the name and

address of the company must be indicated. The name of the person completing

the invoice may also be indicated. This field may be left blank if this information is

provided elsewhere on the invoice.

Field No. 21 Departmental Ruling:

Give the number and date of any departmental ruling applicable to the

shipment.

Field No. 22 This field is to be checked off when the remaining fields 23-25 are not applicable.

Field No. 23 This field is completed when the following are included in the invoice total (field

17):

• the cost of transportation of the loading, unloading and handling charges

and other charges and expenses associated with the transportation from the

place of direct shipment to Canada

• the cost of insurance relating to the transportation of the goods from the

place within the country of export from which the goods are shipped

• costs, charges or expenses for the construction, erection, assembly,

maintenance and technical assistance when incurred after the importation

of the goods and are identified separately from the price paid or payable

• export packing

Field No. 24 This field is completed when the following are not included in the invoice total

(field 17):

• the cost of transportation of the loading, unloading and handling charges

and other charges and expenses associated with the transportation to the

place of direct shipment to Canada

• amounts for commissions other than buying commissions

• packing costs and charges in respect of the goods and all expenses of

packing incident to placing the goods in the condition in which they are

shipped. Including the cost of cases and other containers and the cost

of labour to the place of direct shipment to Canada

Field No. 25 This field is to be completed (checked) where royalties and license fees including

payments for patents, trade-marks and copyrights are applicable and/or when

the purchaser has supplied goods or services for use in the production of these

goods.

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v 8.0 November 2021

CANADA CUSTOMS INVOICE (SAMPLE ONLY)

Form can be found at: http://www.cbsa.gc.ca/publications/forms-formulaires/ci1.pdf

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v 8.0 November 2021

COMPLETION INSTRUCTIONS – FORM A

In order for a Form A to be accepted by the CSCB, it must be properly completed, as follows:

Field No. 1 Complete with the name, address, and country of the actual manufacturer or

exporter of the goods. Please do not identify a trading house, freight forwarder,

export broker, etc. The manufacturer or exporter must be located in the GPT or

LDCT beneficiary country in which the goods are being certified.

Field No. 2 Identify the consignee (name and address) in Canada.

Field No. 3 The CSCB does not consider this a mandatory field, but you may indicate the

shipping details, as far as known when Form A is completed.

Field No. 4 This field is usually left blank. However, if Form A is issued after the goods have

already been shipped, stamp or write "Issued Retrospectively."

Field No. 5 This field is not mandatory for goods exported to Canada. It is usually used to

itemize goods if Form A covers two or more categories of goods (for example,

items 1, 2, 3 or items a, b, c).

Field No. 6 If the goods are crated or otherwise packaged, indicate the quantity of

packages or crates. Also indicate any markings on the crates that will be useful in

cross-referencing Form A to the Through Bill of Lading so that the CSCB officers

can establish that the form covers the goods that are physically imported.

Field No. 7 Describe the goods fully. Indicate makes, models, styles, serial numbers, or any

other relevant description. It is in the exporter's interest to give as full a description

as possible. The CSCB will not accept a Form A that cannot be matched with the

imported goods due to a vague description. It is also helpful to show the

Harmonized System subheading of the goods in this field.

Field No. 8 The origin criterion shown must be one of the following:

P means 100% of the goods produced in the GPT or LDCT beneficiary country in

question;

F for GPT, means, at least 60% of the ex-factory price is produced in the GPT

beneficiary country;

F for LDCT, means, at least 40% of the ex-factory price is produced in the LDCT

beneficiary country. The existing 40% of the ex-factory price of the goods as

packed for shipment to Canada may also include a value of up to 20% of the ex-

factory price of the goods from countries eligible for GPT;

G for GPT, means at least 60% of the ex-factory price was cumulatively produced

in more than one GPT beneficiary country or Canada;

G for LDCT, means at least 40% of the ex-factory price was cumulatively

produced in more than one LDCT beneficiary country or Canada. The existing

- 131 -

v 8.0 November 2021

40% of the ex-factory price of the goods as packed for shipment to Canada may

also include a value of up to 20% of the ex-factory price of the goods from

countries eligible for GPT.

If any criterion other than P, G, or F is shown for goods exported to Canada, it will

be assumed that the goods do not satisfy the Canadian GPT or LDCT rules of

origin and they will not receive any tariff preference.

Field No. 9 Give the weight or other quantity of the goods. The best unit of measure to use

when completing this field is the unit of measure given for the particular goods in

the Customs Tariff (e.g. number, pairs, dozens, kilograms, litres).

Field No. 10 Cross-reference Form A to the commercial invoice. This helps the CSCB match

the form with the invoice, but it also ensures that the signing officer has verified

the ex-factory price of the proper goods.

Field No. 11 This field may be left blank. As of March 1, 1996, Canada no longer requires Form

A to be certified by a designated authority in the GPT or LDCT beneficiary

country.

Field No. 12 This is the exporter's declaration that Form A is accurate and that the goods do

meet the GPT or LDCT rules of origin. Proof of origin must be completed by the

exporter of the goods in the GPT or LDCT beneficiary country in which the goods

were finished. The individual completing the Form A on behalf of the company

must be knowledgeable regarding the origin of the goods and have access to

cost of production information, should verification be requested.

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FORM A – CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN (SAMPLE ONLY)

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CUSTOMS TARIFF – SCHEDULE

LIST OF COUNTRIES AND APPLICABLE TARIFF TREATMENTS

Please use the following link to access a list of the countries and territories that are designated as

beneficiary countries for the purposes of the tariff treatments indicated. Tariff Treatment

abbreviations are defined in Section 27 of the Customs Tariff.

https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/trade-commerce/tariff-tarif/current-actuel-eng.html

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COMPLETION INSTRUCTIONS – NAFTA CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN

Field 1 Exporter's name and address

Canadian exporters or Canadian producers shipping goods to the U.S. or Mexico - State

the full legal name and address (including country and legal tax identification number)

of the exporter. The number is the employer number or importer/exporter number that

Canada Customs and Revenue Agency assigns.

U.S. exporters or U.S. producers shipping goods to Canada - State the legal name and

address (including the country and legal tax identification number) of the exporter. The

number is the employer identification number that the Internal Revenue Services of the

U.S. Department of the Treasury assigns or, if applicable, the social security number.

Mexico exporters or Mexico producers shipping goods to Canada - State the legal name

and address (including the country and legal tax identification number) of the exporter.

The number is the federal taxpayer's registry number (RFC).

Field 2 Blanket period

A certificate can apply to:

• a single shipment of goods; or

• a multiple shipment of identical goods.

A certificate that covers multiple shipments is called a blanket certificate. Field 2

indicates the starting and ending dates of the blanket period for which certification is

being made. The blanket period can last for two days to one year. It is acceptable to

have a starting date that is before the date the certificate is signed. The importer can

apply for a refund of the duty paid on goods entered on the certificate before the

certificate is signed.

A blanket certificate certifies that all goods listed in field 5 of that document that are

imported into Canada during the blanket period qualify as originating under the rules of

origin, and that those goods are eligible for preferential tariff treatment.

When goods are imported into a bonded warehouse, it is the date they enter the

warehouse that should be covered by the blanket period. The fact that accounting for

the goods and claiming a NAFTA tariff treatment might not occur until sometime later

does not affect the validity of the certificate, as long as the goods entered Canada

within the blanket period.

Field 3 Producer's name and address

State the full legal name, address (including country), and legal tax identification

number, as defined in field 1, of the person or company that produced the goods.

If the exporter is also the producer of the goods, enter "same."

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If the certificate covers goods produced by more than one company, attach a list of

the producers with the appropriate information. Cross-reference each producer with

the goods they produced, as described in field 5.

If the exporter does not wish to disclose the identity of the producer to the importer, it is

acceptable to state "available to customs on request."

If exporters do not know the identity of the producer of the goods, that usually means

that they do not know the origin of the goods, and therefore should not be completing

a Certificate of Origin. However, in rare instances, it is acceptable for the exporter to

state that the producer is "unknown."

Field 4 Importer's name and address

State the full legal name, address (including country), and legal tax identification

number (as defined in field 1) of the importer.

If there is more than one importer, state "various."

If the importer is unknown, state "unknown." This often applies when producers complete

certificates for exporters.

Field 5 Description of good(s)

Provide a full description of each good covered by the certificate. List only goods that

satisfy the NAFTA rules of origin.

The description must provide enough detail to relate the certificate to the imported

goods and to the invoice. Model and serial numbers are not required, but they can be

used as a cross-reference to the invoice and to differentiate between originating and

non-originating goods.

It is in the exporter's interest to give as full a description as possible, since Canada

Customs and Revenue Agency may not accept a certificate if it cannot match it to the

imported goods because of a vague description.

Goods that fall under the same origin criterion but under different HS subheadings (or

conversely under the same HS subheading but a different origin criterion) must be

described separately.

If the certificate covers a single shipment of a good, include the invoice number as

shown on the commercial invoice. If not known, indicate another unique reference

number, such as the shipping order, purchase order, or letter of credit number.

When necessary, attach a separate listing on a continuation sheet to the certificate to

provide a complete description of the good or goods.

Field 6 HS tariff classification number

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For each good described, identify the HS tariff classification. For most goods, identifying

the six-digit HS subheading is sufficient. For some goods, however, the specific rule of

origin (from Annex 401 of the Agreement) requires a change at the eight-digit, tariff-

item level. For these goods, identify the eight-digit tariff item of the importing country.

Field 7 Preference criteria

There are six preference criteria: A through F. Each of these preference criteria

correspond to a category of rules of origin. Since each good described in field 5 of the

certificate must be an originating good, they must each satisfy a rule of origin. The

preference criterion is essentially a code which tells both the importer and Canada

Customs and Revenue Agency which rule-of-origin category the goods satisfy.

Consequently, exporters or producers who try to identify a preference criterion without

familiarizing themselves with the rules of origin

and applying them will have a difficult

time choosing a criterion.

Criterion A corresponds to article 401(a) of the Agreement, which covers goods that

are "wholly obtained or produced in one or more of Canada, Mexico, and the

United States."

Wholly obtained or produced only refers to goods that were grown, mined, bred,

fished, extracted, etc., from a NAFTA party. The goods must be 100% NAFTA origin

to qualify under this criterion.

Simply because goods were purchased from a supplier in Canada, the U.S., or

Mexico does not mean that they are wholly obtained within the meaning of

criterion A.

Criterion B corresponds to article 401(b) of the Agreement, which covers goods that

a producer makes using non-originating materials.

The non-originating materials

must meet the conditions set out in the specific rule of origin that applies, which can

be found in Annex 401 of the Agreement.

The rules of origin ensure that any non-originating materials undergo enough

processing before they can be transformed into a North American product. Most

often, the rule of origin is expressed in terms of an HS classification change. This

means that a non-originating material changes from one classification number in

the HS to another.

When the material is incorporated into the final product, in some cases the rule of

origin requires a certain percentage of the value of the goods, referred to as

regional value content, to be incurred in North America in addition to the HS

classification change. The rules in Annex 401 of the Agreement define exactly what

must occur before the good can be considered as originating.

Criterion C corresponds to article 401(c) of the Agreement, which covers goods a

producer makes using only originating materials. The difference between criteria A

and C is that the originating materials used under criterion C can have some non-

NAFTA content which has already been transformed by the producer's North

American supplier into an originating material.

(Please note that criterion C does not necessarily mutually exclude criteria A, B, D,

or E.)

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Criterion D corresponds to article 401(d) of the Agreement, which covers goods

where there is no change in tariff classification from non-originating materials to the

finished good. However, since criterion D applies only in two very limited

circumstances, its use is quite rare.

Please note that criterion D can never be used for wearing apparel provided for in

chapters 61 and 62 of the HS, or for textile articles described in chapter 63.

The types of goods that can be considered as originating under criterion D are as

follows:

• Goods which are complete except for being imported into the NAFTA

territory in an unassembled or disassembled condition can be considered as

originating. The unassembled or disassembled materials are classified in the

same heading or subheading as the assembled good, and the heading or

subheading cannot be further divided. The cost of assembling such goods in

the NAFTA territory must satisfy a regional-value-content requirement.

Please

note that this rule is limited to unassembled goods in which all the materials

for assembling the goods are included at the time the goods are imported

into the NAFTA territory. If any additional materials must be added to the non-

originating unassembled goods, the goods imported into Canada will not

qualify for NAFTA. In reality, the application of this rule is extremely limited.

• When goods produced using non-originating materials that cannot

undergo the required change because the non-originating materials are

classified as "parts" in the HS under the same heading or subheading as the

finished goods, and the heading or subheading is not further subdivided,

these goods can be considered as originating. A regional-value-content

condition must be satisfied.

Criterion E applies only to certain automatic data-processing goods. These goods

are specifically identified in Annex 308.1 of the Agreement (Table 308.1.1). Canada,

the U.S., and Mexico have agreed to reduce the most-favoured-nation (MFN) duty

rate for certain automatic data-processing equipment and parts falling into the

categories listed below. Except for category (vi) below, the goods will have their

MFN duty rates eliminated or reduced in five equal annual stages starting January 1,

1999. For category (vi) (computer parts of subheading No. 8473.30), the three

parties reduced their MFN rate to free as of January 1, 1994.

The categories of goods covered under criterion E are:

• automatic data processing (ADP) machines;

• digital processing units;

• input or output units;

• storage units;

• other units of ADP (subheading No. 8471.90 );

• parts of computers (subheading No. 8473.30); and

• computer power supplies.

Once the MFN duty rate has been reduced according to the staging schedule, and

all three parties have arrived at the reduced rate, these goods will be considered as

originating when traded among the three parties. Please note that under Canada

Tariff, most of these goods are duty free under the most-favoured-nation.

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Criterion F applies to bilateral trade agreements between NAFTA countries. One set

of rules apply to U.S./Mexico trade, and another set of rules apply to

Canada/Mexico trade. Criterion F is not relevant to Canada/U.S. trade.

Criterion F should not be used for goods exported from the U.S. to Canada. For

goods exported from Mexico to Canada, exporters or producers should follow the

instructions below.

When agricultural goods are imported into Canada, to complete field 7, the

exporter or producer must first determine if they are originating goods under criteria

A, B, or C (criteria D and E are not relevant to agricultural goods). Then, if the goods

are wholly produced in Mexico or jointly produced Mexican/U.S. or

Mexican/Canadian, it must be determined if the goods are qualifying goods within

the meaning of Annex 703.2, section B, paragraph 14. Annex 703.2-B-14 says:

... qualifying good means an originating good that is an agricultural good except

that, in determining whether such good is an originating good, operations

performed in or material obtained from the United States shall be considered as if

they were performed or obtained from a non-party. After the exporter or producer

determines that the goods are originating and qualifying, they must determine if the

goods are subject to any quantitative restrictions when imported into Canada. If no

quantitative restrictions apply, the exporter or producer may use criterion F.

Field 8 Producer

In this field, the person completing the Certificate of Origin is telling Canada Customs

and Revenue Agency why they have the information needed to substantiate the

certificate.

If the exporter is the producer of the goods, state "yes."

If the exporter is not the producer, state "no," followed by one of three possible

explanations why the exporter is in a position to certify the origin of the goods:

• "No(1)" if the origin of the goods was certified based on the exporter's

knowledge of whether the goods qualify as originating;

• "No(2)" if the person signing the certificate is relying on written information from

the producer (other than a Certificate of Origin) documenting that the

goods qualify as originating; or

• "No(3)" if a completed and signed Certificate of Origin for the goods was

provided to the exporter by the producer.

Whether or not an exporter can use "no(1)" will depend on the specific rule of origin. If

the rule of origin requires only a tariff change, and the exporters know where the tariff

change occurs, then they can use "no(1)." However, if the rule of origin involves a

regional-value-content requirement, it is unlikely that the exporter will be able to

substantiate the certificate without cost-of-production documentation from the

producer.

If exporters cannot substantiate the origin of goods, they should not be completing a

Certificate of Origin.

Field 9 Net cost

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In this field, those completing the Certificate of Origin indicate whether or not they used

the net cost method to determine the regional value content (RVC) of a good. If the

rule of origin for the goods requires the RVC to be calculated, the exporter or producer

can use two methods of calculation. One is the transaction value method, and the

other is the net cost method. This field should be completed in all cases with one of the

following:

• If the exporter or producer has used the net cost method to determine the

RVC, they will indicate "NC."

• If the exporter or producer has used the transaction value method, they will

indicate "no."

• If the rule of origin for the goods does not require the RVC to be calculated,

they will indicate "no."

In some cases, when exporters or producers use the net cost method to calculate RVC,

they are entitled to average certain costs over a period of time. If they have averaged

costs, they should identify the starting and ending dates of the averaging period below

the "NC" (e.g., "02/01/07 - 31/03/07").

Field 10 Country of origin

This field has different applications for each country.

If field 10 is not completed, neither the importer nor Canada Customs and Revenue

Agency will know which of the different tariff treatments the goods are eligible to

receive. In this case, Canada Customs and Revenue Agency will expect the importer to

pay the highest applicable NAFTA duty rates.

For most goods imported into Canada, there are three NAFTA tariff treatments.

For originating agricultural and textile goods imported into Canada, the exporter or

producer should indicate either "US" or "MX" in field 10. If there is some joint production

of the agricultural or textile goods between the U.S. and Mexico, the exporter or

producer must apply the Determination of Country of Origin for the Purposes of Marking

Goods Regulations to determine whether the goods are Mexican or American.

For all other goods imported into Canada, the exporter or producer will indicate either

"US," "MX," or "JNT" in field 10. "JNT" stands for joint production of goods between the U.S.

and Mexico. Generally speaking, using "JNT" will result in the highest NAFTA duty rate

being applied to the goods. However, some rules of origin essentially say that, if there is

joint production between the U.S. and Mexico and the contribution of one of those

countries is relatively insignificant, the exporter can claim that the goods originate in the

country where most of the production occurred. When both the U.S. and Mexico

contribute significantly to the production of the goods, the exporter must state "JNT" in

field 10. When there is joint production of the goods between the U.S. and Mexico, the

exporter or producer should see the NAFTA Tariff Preference Regulations, found in

Canada Customs and Revenue Agency Memorandum D11-4-19, Regulations

Respecting the Determination of When Goods are Entitled to the Benefit of the United

States Tariff or Mexico-United States Tariff, to determine whether they should complete

field 10 with "US," "MX," or "JNT."

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Field 11 Certification

The exporter or producer completing the Certificate of Origin is strongly advised to read

the statements in field 11 before signing the certificate.

All the information in field 11 (which includes the signature area) must be completed.

In addition to being able to substantiate the origin of the goods, the person signing the

certificate should be someone in the company who is entitled to sign legally binding

documents on behalf of the exporter or producer. This is someone who has full

knowledge of the origin of the goods, and who has access to the books and records

that substantiate the claim. If the statements made in the certificate are untrue, the

company could be liable for penalties.

Update: February 17, 2005 - http://www.cbsa.gc.ca/publications/dm-md/d11/d11-4-5-eng.pdf

General Preferential Tariff (GPT)

If the 60% ex-factory price is not satisfied, or is not supported by adequate documentation, the

goods are not eligible for the GPT and a Form A should not be issued for such goods.

Least Developed Country Tariff (LDCT)

If the 40% ex-factory price is not satisfied, or is not supported by adequate documentation, the

goods are not eligible for the LDCT and a Form A should not be issued for such goods.

NAFTA – CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN (SAMPLE ONLY)

Form can be found at: http://www.cbsa.gc.ca/publications/forms-formulaires/b232-eng.pdf

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