Logically, if you have a business and have done reasonably well in your based country, you may think your next step would be to sell and start a new business. However there are also at the same time other options at your disposal available. As the article title hints to, or points hinting at the article will demonstrate how expanding your business internationally. Obviously depending on the type of business, this may not be possible but generally speaking, it is, therefore this article will aim to serve as a general guide to expansion globally. It will provide top tips when businesses reach that pivotal stage and have to.
For example if you are in the clothing industry, you could still have headquarters in your country you set up the business in. Then simply when required ship a parcel to Australia from UK or too wherever your secondary market is. You can use an international courier service to do this in days, as their shipping services by air a have become much more reliable and cheaper in recent years as new technology and economies of scale have lowered costs.
Always check that your goods are legal within the Country that you wish to market them in. Many food products, for example, require FDA approval before they can be sold in the United States of America. Also some products may be illegal in some markets for religious reasons.
You need to ensure that you can deal with any queries in the local language in a professional and timely manner. Before expanding do proper research, such as knowing the price of competing products and services to ensure that you are commercially viable before investing large amounts of money in the potential marketplace.
You may find that different countries have different payment terms, so you need to ensure that your funding is in place for any orders you get. Sometimes funding for international orders can be found from government sources, especially if you are in a European Union member country.
Visiting and exhibiting at international trade shows can be a great way of seeing what products people are offering to a specific marketplace, and gauging that markets interest in your products.
Of course this type of action isn’t all sunshine and roses, it’s hard work to expand a business into a different country. There are language barriers, logistical differences, and many other hurdles and challenges too. Although as the word challenge hints to it’s something that can be overcome with hard work, and dedicated effort. Yet this isn’t the same type of work required when setting up the first business based in your home country, why for a simple reason you don’t want to close the first business down you want to expand, so you will have to use your wits and be strong in the tough bold decisions you will have to make.
