We have written a lot about growing in Europe, here are the most common strategies. See what could work for you.
1. Hire a local sales team (go big or go home)
Set up a local office and hire in-market talent. This way you have full control and brand alignment, but it’s slow and pricey. Ideal for those with deep pockets playing the long game and are 99% sure that the selected market is the one.
Cost & Risk: 🔴 High. Office, salaries, and setup = serious upfront investment. You bear all market risk.
Speed to Market: 🔴 Slow. Hiring and ramping takes months.
Control & Branding: 🟢 Maximum. You own the entire process and brand experience.
Best For: Deep-pocketed companies with long-term plans in a key market.
https://www.cognism.com/blog/european-market-entry
2. Work with resellers/distributors (box movers)
Let local partners sell your product. Low effort, faster entry, low risk. But you give up control and many resellers only act if the customer asks. The bummer? They’re often happy to “see if it sells itself”, unless you bring strong inbound or your product perfectly complements what they already sell.
Cost & Risk: 🟢 Low. Minimal investment, but you might waste your time convincing them this is worth the effort, but never see any results.
Speed to Market: 🟡 Medium. Quicker than hiring, slower than agents.
Control & Branding: 🔴 Limited. You don’t control how or when they sell your product.
Best For: Companies who have strong international product-market-fit & inbound funnel and need local help onboarding and serving the customers.
3. Exclusive local partner (Franchise-style play)
Find one local team or person to go all-in on your product. You scale fast with someone motivated, but you’re betting everything on one relationship. Choose wisely.
Cost & Risk: 🟢 Low cost for you, because they invest. But risky if they underperform.
Speed to Market: 🟢 Fast, if you find the right partner immediately.
Control & Branding: 🟡 Moderate. You set terms, but they run the day-to-day. You also often need to give exclusive rights to that market.
Best For: Markets where you need someone smart and entrepreneurial fully committed without opening your own office.
4. Use on-demand sales agents via Sellai (keep it simple)
No hiring, no waiting, no exclusive rights, or inactivity. Just see if you can find a great sales agent on our platform, start working transparently with a simple agreement and operate on a monthly basis without hiring. Fast, flexible, low risk, this is especially great if not yet 100% sure about the market and want a lean way of getting the first customers and scale to the next one.
- Cost & Risk: 🟢 Low. Flexible monthly fees – skip the legal entity.
- Speed to Market: 🟢 Very fast. Start in weeks, not months.
- Control & Branding: 🟢 High. Agents work closely with you and follow your playbook.
- Best For: Fast movers and lean teams. Great for companies who need flexible active local outbound saleswork with long deal cycles in different markets.
See if you can find a perfect agent for you!
Quick Snapshot
Sellai = Your shortcut to trusted local sales talent in Europe.
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