This should be selected based on the concentration of the target market as well as its access to the location.
e) The fact that the company has been successful in the past does not automatically mean that it will be successful in the future expansion projects. It is crucial to adapt each decision to the specifics of the expansion project.
f) The decision of whether to use a local or a delegated managerial team depends on each situation and should be made after a thorough analysis of the project features and requirements.
g) While it cannot be said that a specific industry or business is recession proof, the McDonald's experience in India has shown that there are still businesses which thrive in times of crisis. It is as such necessary to offer products and services which are necessary and adapted to the respective economic cycle.
h) Neither of specialized literature nor the models of previous market penetrations can offer the secret recipe for success in expansion of the business operations into foreign regions. In other words, it is necessary for all economic agents to develop and implement their own specific and personalized entry strategies, tailored to the particular needs of both company, as well as foreign market.
5. Conclusions
The changes of the past century have created an opportunity for economic agents to transcend boundaries and both benefit from the comparative advantages of these regions, as well as sell their own products onto the new market. In spite of the appealing sound attached to the opportunities, fact remains that both processes are complex and tedious, and they must be handled with the utmost business intelligence.
A relevant example of an organization which has managed to successfully penetrate a new region is constituted by the case of McDonald's in India. The fast food giant spent six years documenting the foreign market and establishing business partnerships with the local...
Once there, it created a personalized menu to serve the unique needs of the Indian population. A relevant example of a less successful expansion campaign is constituted by Disney's penetration of Europe. The American corporation strived to implement the same model as in the United States, and when this proved unsuccessful, it raised prices, to additionally increase the distance between the product and the customers. Eventually, the American managerial team was replaced with a European one, better able to comprehend and serve the needs of the European population.
The essence of the lessons drawn from the two cases is that of creating a business expansion model which integrates at least the following:
A thorough understanding of the foreign market
Adaptation to the foreign market and to the requirements of the expansion process
The correlation of company resources, goals and capacities with the expansion desiderates.
