SPIKE IN COUNTRIES EXPLORING EUROPE
Enterprise Singapore, which champions internationalisation, mentioned it has seen a spike in corporations exploring alternatives in Europe post-pandemic.
In 2023, EnterpriseSG supported 220 corporations to discover a variety of markets in Europe, together with Belgium, France and Germany. This was 20 per cent greater than in 2022, and nearly 50 per cent greater than that in 2019, pre-COVID-19.
German companies, specifically, are eager to associate, or faucet merger and acquisition alternatives with Singapore companies, mentioned Mr Alan Yeo, director of Europe at EnterpriseSG.
Many small- and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) in Germany, have confronted challenges in rising as a result of restricted dimension and market dimension in Germany, and need to enterprise out, however they’ve restricted alternatives, he mentioned.
In addition they discover succession planning for his or her notably area of interest and technology-based companies tough, he added.
“They’re on the lookout for companions who may help them to develop by way of totally different markets, particularly in Southeast Asia or Asia areas and (a few of them) are additionally very open to merger and acquisition alternatives and joint ventures,” he mentioned.
GROWING TECH PARTNERS
With Singapore and Germany sharing many financial precedence areas, there continues to be room for start-ups to faucet alternatives. Below an initiative known as the International Innovation Programme, EnterpriseSG is seeking to develop extra companions within the tech sector.
Corporations like TeleMedC, which makes use of what could cross off as a routine eye test to detect ailments like diabetes, have benefitted from the programme.
In 2021, the agency needed to carry its synthetic intelligence software program out of Asia in 2021, and crack into the European market by Germany.
Nevertheless, success was out of sight initially. Language was a giant barrier, mentioned the agency’s CEO Para Segaram.
“None of us spoke German, so it was very tough going to a rustic the place you do not even know the language. The complete enterprise conduct is all in German, so it is fairly difficult,” he mentioned.
He added that the agency additionally didn’t know find out how to enter the German market. Via the programme, he was capable of hyperlink up with different stakeholders.
EnterpriseSG appoints a community of companions to speed up companies’ journeys by familiarising them with a market, serving to them strategise and constructing connections, mentioned its assistant managing director of innovation Emily Liew.
“We’ll join them to traders, reference prospects or different co-innovators, if you recognize they should enhance their product for the market additional,” she mentioned.
