Ladd Christensen, Global Bridge Foundation
Geoff Woolley, Chairman, UVF
Kent Madsen, Wasatch Venture Fund
Kevin Nethercott, LighUp Inc.
This session was sponsored by Sungard
International Investing Panel
Q: What kinds of special opportunities exist worldwide?
Geoff: Europeans are not quite entrepreneurial as Americans, though that is changing. Also, remember the powerful European Union.
Ladd: The international aspect is relevant to American venture capitalists because we ought not to be blind to the world. Now, the United States is no longer such a supreme economic power in the world. You need to think about business on a global level.
Jeffrey: Working overseas is less risky now.
Kevin: Over 60 percent of our revenue has come from overseas. Regardless of the size of your organization, you're playing a global game. The world, as Thomas Friedman says, truly is flat. Seek to make global relationships that last a lifetime. When you go overseas, it changes the way you look at things. How many of you have been overseas? [Almost all in the audience raise their hands.]
Ladd: It certainly helps to understand a foreign language and culture before you do business there.
Kent: What opportunities do the other panel members see overseas as opposed to the U.S.?
Geoff: There are more gaps in market efficiency to exploit. For example, in Hungary, the change in government meant that ownership of many apartment complexes changed hands to where many of the people now own their own properties. So there's an equity release opportunity for a foreign company to come in and try. I think you should assess whether you really are okay with the possibility of living overseas for a much longer time than four or five years. Do you want to establish a long-term business network there or here?
Ladd: You do go invest for a short period of time. Technology is bringing the world together more now, so that you can more easily do business from anywhere.
Kevin: As I taught English once in Japan, I used that opportunity to do sales and make friends in different industries. Don't just go overseas to party.
Ladd: Different countries are strategically best for different opportunities. They may lean towards different business models for the same products.
Jeffrey: Everyone here is likely very ambitious. Now the thing for you to do is to go find a place to make your ambitions become realities.
Q: How do you start a business and reach customers overseas?
Kevin: You can't do it on a whim. Look for someone there who can help you learn the culture, language, business patterns, etc. Relationships are very important. Your personal relationships with people in other countries can become very important. Find the right consultant as well; that might be an excellent shortcut to place you in front of the right people to get your business jumpstarted.
Ladd: Different degrees of relations are required in different countries. In China, it's imperative that you have strong relationships with people first.
Q: How do you decide whether to import goods or produce them in the country where you sell them?
Kevin: For a software company, for example, in China, the bigger the box is, the more it's worth – because software is all free in China. Your distribution, service, and support models may all change. Often, what changes is the service model – perhaps offering a smaller upfront fee and then charging a monthly rate as opposed to prepaid, etc.
Ladd: If the people already like your brand, get in there and give them the product.
Q: How do you make your investors comfortable with the myriad rules that exist throughout the world?
Geoff: There's an infrastructure issue – although in Europe's case, that has become easier to deal with because of the unifying rules set by the European Union.
Jeffrey: The risk is much lower in many countries now than it was a few years ago.
Kevin: Think globally; there may be many more investment options than what you are accustomed to.
Geoff: In Hungary, for example, much of the paperwork is ironically easy to process and done online, because of the fact that its government is so young.
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