Last week UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) hosted a delegation of six Mexican technology companies interested in entering the UK market. The diversity and dynamism of this delegation mirrored the energy bubbling in Mexico’s thriving tech startup scene today.
Spanning biotechnology, digital marketing technology, digital gaming, IT infrastructure, mobile applications and software as a service — the group held many pressing questions regarding the opportunities and challenges intrinsic to structuring business abroad. As part of the delegation’s knowledge-gathering mission, 321Market was asked to arrange a half-day workshop to address these queries.
The workshop — a simulation of 321Market’s accelerator programs Advance and Propel — went beyond logistics to feature interactive talks and Q&A from some of the UK’s leading experts in international patent and intellectual property law, employment law, market-entry communications, global finance & accounting and human resources.
The end-result was great fun to witness: a mash-up of insider information on UK market-entry.
Paul Spindler of Kingston Smith gave an eye-opening glimpse into UK tax incentive programs for technology companies. Ann Jamieson of SJ & Partners provided key advice on how to attain the right talent mix for early-stage businesses in the UK. Senior partners at DAC Beachcroft offered a host of crucial legal counsel necessary for startups and my own talk from Gutenberg Communications shed light on the strategic value of market-entry communications for Latin American tech companies.
The workshop was further enhanced by tactical insight into the process of defining a market-entry strategy that is both cognizant of cultural difference and celebratory of industry strengths — offered by Steven Leof of 321Market and Isaac Vargas of UKTI.
As one of the most important emerging economies in the world today — growing 40 percent faster than Brazil’s economy according to TechCrunch — Mexico is full of technology talent and global ambition. UK businesses are wise to take note.
STEVEN LEOF 