Internationalization
The nine pillars of internationalization
Becoming part of a market rests on nine capabilities. Export needs one or two of them. That is the whole difference, and it explains why so many expansions stall after the first orders.
The list
- Local presence. Offices, partners, or a visit schedule you keep.
- Relationships. With retailers, distributors, buyers, institutions, built over years.
- Local team. People who understand the language, the culture and the way business is done.
- Market intelligence. Competitors, pricing, regulation, behaviour, channels, trends.
- Commercial network. Knowing who decides and how each company operates.
- Reputation. Being recognised as a long-term partner, not an occasional supplier.
- Business development. Creating opportunities before they officially exist.
- Infrastructure. Logistics, compliance, warehousing, legal and financial capability.
- Continuity. Returning consistently, not only when there is an opportunity.
Five phases
Understand, build, enter, develop, establish. The pillars are what you need; the phases are the order in which you build them.
Why this framework
Because it makes the difference between export and internationalization checkable. If a plan has fewer than seven of the nine, it is an export plan. There is nothing wrong with exporting. It is just not the same project.
By
Born in Italy, Dario Picardi has spent more than fifteen years in beauty, consumer goods, real estate and international business, building and scaling premium brands and entering the U.S. and Latin American markets. He founded BIZ & STYLE in Miami in 2017.
Questions
How long does the Enter phase take?
Long enough to meet the key accounts, distributors and retailers more than once and to be at the shows where they are. Consistency in this phase decides everything after it.
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