The goWholesale Blog

Beat the Weak U.S. Dollar–Go Global!

April 30th, 2008

Expanding overseas is a common idea entrepreneurs have in their business plans as a “down the road” growth option but with the recession and subsequent weakening of the U.S. dollar, it might just be the key to keeping your business afloat. Many companies are able to sell their products for twice as much as they can here!

While opening a brick and mortar store is certainly optimal, if you are a small company who doesn’t think you can spare the capital to do so, don’t fret. Another perfectly viable option is to open an international website (ie. a .uk site). Yet another option is to ship over seas and accept various forms of currency, if you’d prefer to test the international “waters” before you take the plunge.

Be forewarned however…going global is no easy (or small) task. Tracey Mullin of the NRF’s STORES Magazine states:

“In addition to potential hurdles with vendors, disparities in laws and differing customer priorities, retailers must identify a merchandise mix that appeals to a new demographic. While the transition may be a bit easier for online retailers, these companies face their own challenges nuances in language, inventory control, even the selection of website colors and fonts.”

Yes, it’s risky and a lot of work…but it just might keep your business from succumbing to this dismal stateside economy.

Check out our Doing Business Internationally articles for more tips on how to get started going overseas.

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Thinking about going global?

January 16th, 2008

If you haven’t seen it already, Entrepreneur.com has a great article listing 20 things to consider before you take the leap. Here are the first 5:

“Factor 1: Get company-wide commitment. Every employee should be a vital member of your international team, from the executive suite to customer service through engineering, purchasing, production and shipping. You’re all in it for the long haul.

Factor 2: Define your business plan for accessing global markets. An international business plan is important in order to define your company’s present status and internal goals and commitment, but it’s also necessary if you plan to measure your results.

Factor 3: Determine how much you can afford to invest in your international expansion efforts. Will it be based on ten percent of your domestic business profits or on a pay-as-you-can-afford process?

Factor 4: Plan at least a two-year lead-time for world market penetration. It takes time and patience to build a great, enduring global enterprise, so be patient and plan for the long haul.

Factor 5: Build a website and implement your international plan sensibly. Many companies offer affordable packages for building a website, but you must decide in what language you’ll communicate. English is unarguably the most important language in the world, but only 28 percent of the European population can read it. That percentage is even lower in South America and Asia. Over time, it would be best to slowly build a site that communicates sensibly and effectively with the world.”

For the rest of them check out “20 Factors to Consider Before Going Global”

Also check out “Preparing Your Business to Enter the Foreign Market” and “Gathering Foreign Market Research” for more information on going global!

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