The Business Journal hosted its inaugural International Business Forum & Awards Oct. 27, and the panel explored an interesting crossroads companies are at: whether to focus on nearshoring or to pursue international markets.
 
Atul Sapra, principal, international tax services, India desk, for RSM U.S., explained that some business leaders are deciding to keep things closer to home.
“Since the pandemic, since the tariff wars, labor shortages, I think you’ll see a lot more people … looking at nearshoring.”

But there’s potentially good reason to still expand overseas. Sapra said Asia as a whole, for example, is expected to have about 50% of global gross domestic product and 40% of consumer purchasing power by 2040.
“That’s phenomenal,” he said. “If you’re not in those markets, particularly for those consumers, I think you’re missing out.”

Business leaders need to understand new markets before they try to establish a presence there, however.
 
Stephen Cheung, president of World Trade Center Los Angeles and chief operating officer and executive vice president of Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., who moderated the panel, used L.A. as an example of how easy it is to underestimate a complex market.

“A lot of people don’t even know there are 80 different cities in Los Angeles and that your market approach to Beverly Hills might be very different than what you do over in Pomona.”

Panelists shared tips for how to then strategically enter international markets.
Chirag Shah, chief financial officer at Cornerstone, stressed the importance of timing, not just in terms of launch dates but in terms of understanding consumer behavior.
 
“Timing out when you decide to go into international markets can really impact how successful you are in those markets,” he said. “Some may be ready for your product now, and some may be less mature and take time to develop the level of demand to justify an investment into them.”  

But, taking a broader view, Sapra and Shah both emphasized that there are several ways to go about expanding internationally. And you don’t have to go it alone.
“If it’s a market similar to the U.S., like the UK, you may not need a partner,” Shah said. “If it’s a market that’s markedly different, or one that carries higher risk, having a partner is likely going to add value and help you avoid pitfalls.”