Economics

A Market Big as All the World

Looking for sales and expansion opportunities abroad? Take it from someone who has made it her business to know, it's a whole new ball game

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June 17, 2004 at 4:00 AM UTC

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By Rebecca Herwick

There was a time that I believed that global expansion -- a natural for my business, which is licensed to sell Harley-Davidson, Ford, and Carey Chen novelties as well as giftware and other specialty products -- would be a natural evolution. Back in the early 1990s, when I was in a predecessor partnership in the same line of business, I was visiting customers in Europe and noticed that counterfeit merchandise was flooding the market. That surely meant robust demand for our decals, emblems, ball caps, bandanas, and the like -- and a substantial opportunity.