When companies first go global, they tend to select the richest foreign markets. After all, if you want to make money abroad, you follow the money abroad. Yet this strategy overlooks the bulk of the world’s population. And it also …
Wal-Mart did $191 billion in revenues last year. By 2011, analysts expect it to hit $450 billion. It has more than 4,600 stores open around the world right now; it is already the largest employer in many states – with …
UPS is like a lot of American multinationals – its international business is not the core source of revenues, but is an increasingly vital source of revenues. This week, UPS released its quarterly figures: we find that while its U.S. …
I knew there were strict rules about what constituted actual “champagne” but wasn’t aware there were also rules for feta. This from the EU: The label “feta” can only be used for the distinctive cheese from certain Greek regions under …
A great interview with Andy Chuang of Goodcharacters.com in Fresno, California. His company specializes in Chinese naming and linguistic evaluation. The interview was conducted by Steve Rivkin; here’s an excerpt: For example, Toshiba once had a commercial song in China …
The computer industry is in a slump. People aren’t upgrading their computers every 18 months and companies like Dell and Intel are rightly worried. Yet there is still hope to be had in “emerging markets.” Here’s what the president of …
Accepting payments in other currencies is a never-ending headache for companies, particularly small businesses. And although credit cards provide a nice alternative, many Europeans have yet to embrace them. So PayPal will soon allow you to transfer money in Euros, …
Living in the U.S., it’s easy to take a one-sided view of globalization, where U.S. companies expand into foreign markets. But globalization cuts both ways, and I always love to see foreign companies take on U.S. multinationals on their home …
A good article about Japanese culture (and American ignorance) in the NY Times.