The latest macroeconomic data about Italy are a real disaster.
Unemployment is at its highest level since 1977, the GDP is expected to grow less than 1% and that will make Italy the slowest county in the EU28.
Looking at these numbers there is definitely no reason whatsoever to believe we will finally get out of this mud.
But... in reality Italy has got a quite strong and robust base and infrastructure. There is a number of medium small companies that are scattered throughout Italy and that are the beating heart of the country.
The potential is there. It's a quite powerful engine that must be properly managed and driven.
Yes. It must be managed.
We need a skilled driver to be able to put these companies in the right conditions to operate.
Indeed, Italy is currently exporting 3,1% of the TOTAL WORLD EXPORT value. It's among the top 10 exporting countries in the world and 3rd in Europe. It's simply a very good engine that must be well lubricated.
Infact, out of the 210.000 Italian companies that have exported in 2013 (yes, two hundred and ten thousands!!!), 85% exported less than 750kEuro.
Only 4,5% of them exported, on the other hand, more than 5 Mil. Euro. Less than 9.500 companies.
We can then say that only these companies have a proper export department, a department that has got the skills, the knowledge and the target to develop the market in all the aspects:
1) find customers
2) develop relationships
3) communicate the strategy
3) keep the customers
In reality though, although this picture clearly shows a weak point of our country, it gives also a big hope. In reality we can say that 85% of the company that export HAVE BEEN CHOSEN by their customers.
They have been found and given an opportunity thanks to their skills.
They have been invited into an existing market or created a new one although their set up was not apparently there.
The Prosecco development in Europe is a clear example since in few year it became a well known wine everywhere.
But we are talking about all the different markets, not only our "historical ones" like clothes or food.
They have been chosen because of their Technology, Flexibility, Design, Differentiation, Culture and Price.
In a word because they are Italian.
The customer has chosen them and they have skipped the first step, to find customers.
Now they just have to keep the customers and find new ones.
That's the most difficult thing and what must be written on every agenda of a sales meeting:
And today is the right moment.
Such companies have a flexibility and a speed that very few others can have.
Today is the "Economy of NOW". We are seeing more often that we are moving away from the "Big fish eats small fish" concept and entering a "Quick fish eats slow fish" as Beau Toskich (link is only in Italian, sorry) has correctly said.
These companies can be faster than the market because their structure, most of the times a family business, are normally perfect to react and have a quick execution of their plans.
We need to remember that once you realize that the market is faster than your company you're definitely in trouble.
Yesterday your idea was great
Today is ok
Tomorrow... do you have something different?
And what was innovation yesterday is today commodity.
How to increase the numbers of exporting companies? How to be able to move from being the chosen to being the main actor?
In my humble opinion they need an export department. A strategy and a vision to take control and sit behind the steering wheel.
This will be one of the investments that nobody will regret of.
This blog was created also to try and give some visibility to these 200.000 italian companies.
A little support for this giant task.
Have a nice week
Unemployment is at its highest level since 1977, the GDP is expected to grow less than 1% and that will make Italy the slowest county in the EU28.
Looking at these numbers there is definitely no reason whatsoever to believe we will finally get out of this mud.
But... in reality Italy has got a quite strong and robust base and infrastructure. There is a number of medium small companies that are scattered throughout Italy and that are the beating heart of the country.
The potential is there. It's a quite powerful engine that must be properly managed and driven.
Yes. It must be managed.
We need a skilled driver to be able to put these companies in the right conditions to operate.
Indeed, Italy is currently exporting 3,1% of the TOTAL WORLD EXPORT value. It's among the top 10 exporting countries in the world and 3rd in Europe. It's simply a very good engine that must be well lubricated.
Infact, out of the 210.000 Italian companies that have exported in 2013 (yes, two hundred and ten thousands!!!), 85% exported less than 750kEuro.
Only 4,5% of them exported, on the other hand, more than 5 Mil. Euro. Less than 9.500 companies.
We can then say that only these companies have a proper export department, a department that has got the skills, the knowledge and the target to develop the market in all the aspects:
1) find customers
2) develop relationships
3) communicate the strategy
3) keep the customers
In reality though, although this picture clearly shows a weak point of our country, it gives also a big hope. In reality we can say that 85% of the company that export HAVE BEEN CHOSEN by their customers.
They have been found and given an opportunity thanks to their skills.
They have been invited into an existing market or created a new one although their set up was not apparently there.
The Prosecco development in Europe is a clear example since in few year it became a well known wine everywhere.
But we are talking about all the different markets, not only our "historical ones" like clothes or food.
They have been chosen because of their Technology, Flexibility, Design, Differentiation, Culture and Price.
In a word because they are Italian.
The customer has chosen them and they have skipped the first step, to find customers.
Now they just have to keep the customers and find new ones.
That's the most difficult thing and what must be written on every agenda of a sales meeting:
And today is the right moment.
Such companies have a flexibility and a speed that very few others can have.
Today is the "Economy of NOW". We are seeing more often that we are moving away from the "Big fish eats small fish" concept and entering a "Quick fish eats slow fish" as Beau Toskich (link is only in Italian, sorry) has correctly said.
These companies can be faster than the market because their structure, most of the times a family business, are normally perfect to react and have a quick execution of their plans.
We need to remember that once you realize that the market is faster than your company you're definitely in trouble.
Yesterday your idea was great
Today is ok
Tomorrow... do you have something different?
And what was innovation yesterday is today commodity.
How to increase the numbers of exporting companies? How to be able to move from being the chosen to being the main actor?
In my humble opinion they need an export department. A strategy and a vision to take control and sit behind the steering wheel.
This will be one of the investments that nobody will regret of.
This blog was created also to try and give some visibility to these 200.000 italian companies.
A little support for this giant task.
Have a nice week
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