Market Entry Research That Tests the Business Case Before the Board Approves It
Desktop market sizing tells you the TAM. It does not tell you whether your distributor can clear customs in Guangzhou, whether your pricing model survives VAT stacking in Brazil, or whether the incumbent has an exclusive with the only viable channel partner. SIS International interviews in-country buyers, distributors, and regulators across 135+ countries to surface the friction that kills market entry projects after the capital is committed.
Six Research Lanes for Market Entry Teams
In-Country Feasibility Assessments
SIS conducts 15-20 structured expert interviews per market with in-country distributors, channel partners, regulatory advisors, and category buyers. The output is a go/no-go feasibility assessment that covers addressable market size, competitive density, channel structure, pricing viability, and regulatory barriers specific to your product category. Walmart learned this lesson entering Germany; Uber learned it entering Southeast Asia. The TAM was real. The operational assumptions were not.
Distributor and Channel Partner Vetting
Selecting a distribution partner from a trade directory is how market entries fail quietly. SIS interviews candidate distributors and their existing principals to assess warehouse capacity, geographic coverage, retail relationships, credit terms, and exclusivity conflicts. We also interview the distributors’ current customers to verify service quality claims. One consumer electronics client discovered through our vetting that their preferred LATAM distributor was already under exclusive contract with a direct competitor.
Regulatory and Trade Compliance Mapping
Product registration timelines, import licensing requirements, labeling regulations, and local content mandates vary by jurisdiction and change without notice. SIS interviews regulatory affairs specialists, customs brokers, and trade attorneys in the target market to map the actual compliance pathway. We document the gap between published regulation and enforcement practice, because in markets like India, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia, the written rule and the applied rule often diverge.
Competitive Landscape and Incumbent Analysis
Market entry fails when the entrant underestimates how deeply the incumbent is entrenched. SIS maps competitor positioning by channel, pricing tier, promotional intensity, and distributor loyalty. We interview trade buyers and retail category managers to understand shelf allocation decisions, listing fees, and the promotional spend required to displace the current category leader. In FMCG markets across MENA and ASEAN, channel economics determine viability more than consumer preference does.
Pricing and Margin Architecture Research
Domestic pricing models rarely survive cross-border transfer. SIS maps the full margin stack in the target market: landed cost, customs duty, distributor margin, retailer margin, VAT, and promotional allowances. We interview trade partners at each level of the channel to document the actual margin expectations, not the theoretical ones. A European food brand entering Japan discovered through our research that the required retailer margin and listing fee structure eliminated profitability at their planned price point.
Voice of the Customer in New Markets
Consumer research conducted in the home market does not transfer. SIS runs in-country focus groups, ethnographic research, and quantitative surveys with target buyers in the expansion market to test product-market fit, brand positioning, packaging resonance, and willingness to pay. Category perception, ingredient credibility, and brand trust signals differ by culture. What signals premium in Germany may signal inaccessibility in Mexico.
What SIS Delivers to Market Entry and Expansion Teams
We interview 15-20 in-country experts per market: distributors, channel buyers, regulatory advisors, and category specialists. The deliverable is a structured feasibility assessment covering addressable market, competitive density, channel access, pricing viability, and regulatory timeline. Each finding is sourced from named interviews, not secondary data.
Independent assessment of candidate distribution partners through interviews with the distributor, their existing principals, and their trade customers. We document warehouse capacity, geographic reach, exclusivity conflicts, credit terms, and verified service quality. The output is a ranked shortlist with risk flags, not a directory recommendation.
Channel-level interviews from importer through retailer to document actual margin expectations, listing fees, promotional allowances, and tax treatment at each stage. The deliverable is a complete margin waterfall for the target market that replaces the assumptions in the financial model with verified trade economics.
Interviews with local regulatory affairs consultants, customs brokers, and trade attorneys to map the actual product registration process, documentation requirements, and realistic processing timelines. We document the gap between published regulations and enforcement practice so the launch plan reflects operational reality, not published guidelines.
THE SIS DIFFERENCE
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