For many startups, the idea of European expansion aligns with a long-term revenue growth strategy. Serving approximately 775M people and nearly $23T in GDP, many companies cite the region as the second largest revenue generator. But making that first leap into Europe can be a daunting task, which involves careful planning, insider knowledge and a heavy investment.
Knowing the European market is also knowing that there is no such thing as the European market. The continent boasts 22 different official languages and can be divided into distinct regions based on political and economic alliances, such as DACH, Benelux, UKI and more. Europe is a unique region in that it is divided into an astonishing number of cultures. Each of these cultures often has their own business practices, nuances, language and more, requiring different perspectives and significant effort.
As Andy Champion, General Manager of EMEA for Highspot says, “Europe is a complex mix of markets that vary in size, sophistication, and buyer journeys. Some markets will support a remote sales motion, while others will demand physical presence. Adjusting your Go-to-Market is critical to maximize efficient growth.”
The average start-up expands to Europe between their Series B and C rounds. Knowing how to tackle Europe and the surrounding regions is key to success for those startups that have done this before. For a startup that’s looking to expand into Europe, there are many questions to be answered first:
- Where should the HQ be?
- What will our landing team look like?
- Does our product need localization?
- How big is the addressable market?
- What are our biggest product challenges?
All of these are key questions that need to be addressed in order to put together a cohesive plan for success. To help startup CEOs answer these questions, we’ve created The European Expansion Playbook: Volume 1.
In our just released playbook, we focus on opening up operations in Europe. We spoke to several consultants, executives, and experts from our network, including many leaders across our portfolio companies, to understand the key challenges a non-European based company will face. From bank accounts to recruitment, our aim is to guide you in the decision making process and lend a hand in landing in the European market.
Download the The European Expansion Playbook: Volume 1
And don’t miss the upcoming webinar on May 4th at 10am PT featuring from CCW solutions and OpsRamp to discuss how they expanded their operations into Europe, lessons learned, what they wish they could do differently, how geo-political changes impact the region, and tips and tricks for your expansion planning.
Attend the webinar: The Startup’s Guide to Opening European Operations
