Expansion

Business expansion refers to the strategic increase of a company’s operations, market presence, product offerings or geographical reach. When a company wishes to expand, whether into new markets or introduce different products, the process will require a large amount of resources and a keen knowledge that the company is offering something much stronger than any competition. Expansions are often fraught with risks ranging from foreign regulations, lack of supplier relationships, uncertain forecasts, bad numbers, local hiring issues and dozens of other unforeseeable wrinkles. However, if an expansion effort is successful it can boost a company’s brand and profit margin significantly while setting up the conditions for further expansion. A well-organised expansion depends heavily on the company’s knowledge of its intangible assets. Understanding what patents and IP protections can be carried over into new jurisdictions is important whenever expanding a product into a new market. Trade marks also require careful investigation to avoid stepping on the rights of competitors and to ensure that a brand can achieve quick traction. Data about one customer group may also not apply to a set of customers in a different country, especially if the cultures aren’t similar.