A feasibility study of market expansion for company X

Abstract

This thesis was undertaken for company X which prefers anonymity due to its business field. The case company is of small size and operates in the gold recycling industry in Finland. The goal of this thesis is to contribute to the company‟s understanding of international markets in general, and, specifically to analyze the feasibility of a market expansion to Switzerland.

The main theoretical concepts covered in this thesis relate to internationalization, market and country analysis, and the corporate decision making process. The market entry strategy is based on requirements rather than classical models. Country analysis is based on the four di-mensions model defined by Hofstede and the four factor model as defined by Dlabay and Scott. The decision making process model used is based on the PrOACT system.

Research was completed in two stages: in the first stage a research report was compiled and presented to the case company. In the second stage the initial research was analyzed in co-operation with the case company and a focus for the secondary research was developed. Ini-tial research was undertaken in the form of desktop research and secondary research was un-dertaken in the form of interviews.

The result of the research process provided a means of market comparison and feasibility analysis. The main conclusions that could be drawn are that the gold recycling industry is more competitive in Switzerland and as such a market expansion should only be undertaken in cooperation with a local partner. The case company should furthermore reassess its goals and objectives for international markets and analyze their willingness to take risk in relation to the overall investment.