New Market Entry for APAC Region

Introduction

The client is a technology company based in Somerville, Massachusetts. Their products combine cutting edge hardware and software to create immersive collaborative experiences. The company is well established in the North American market. At the time we began working together, the company was looking towards its Series C raise, for which international expansion was an important part.

Brief

The client had identified the APAC region as an important area of expansion. They had made some ad hoc sales to the region, but did not have a structured plan to capitalize on demand. The client needed to understand a few key things to develop their regional strategy:

• The total addressable, serviceable and obtainable markets for each of 11 countries across the region
• A competitive analysis of the market in each of these countries
• Any regulatory or licensing barriers to market entry in countries where demand would justify investment
• Whether they should enter their chosen markets directly or use 3rd party distributors and resellers
• A vetted list of appropriate potential partners across the region

Actions taken

Unequal Outcome provided a comprehensive market analysis for the client, assessing th markets for both their consumer and B2B offering. This was broken down first by country, and then into the addressable, serviceable, and obtainable portions of each market.

A thorough analysis of each potential competitor by country was also provided, covering their traction within the market, their funding status, their time in the market, distribution channels, and other key elements of their competitive profile.

We then looked at the legal environment to evaluate any regulatory barriers to entry, or any prohibitive licensing practises designed to discourage outside competition. We also looked at any reciprocal recognition for existing certification.

From there, we then looked pragmatically at distribution channels, both those that could be owned directly, and those which would require local partners. An evaluation was performed of each potential distributor, based on their existing product lines, history of success in the target market, and other relevant metrics. This lead us to produce a definitive list of potential partners within each country, and to identify larger distribution partners capable of supporting across multiple markets.

Finally, we synthesized this information to provide a weighted shortlist of commercially, legally and logistically attractive countries to target.

Outcome

The client received a detailed research document on which to build their expansion strategy. This enabled the client to develop a compelling international expansion plan. This plan formed an important part of the client’s Series C round, which was subsequently successful.