What founders only know once they’ve already crossed the line

There's plenty of advice available on international expansion, including market studies, step-by-step plans, and various factors you’re supposed to consider before making the leap. However, more valuable may be open discussions about how things really work in practice—covering both the failures and the fortunate breaks.

With Whale, Gary Vanbutsele is building a platform that helps companies standardise procedures and onboarding, and from day one, he set his sights on the US market. Meanwhile, Thomas Vyncke and Marie Vrijghem are working on Companion.energy, an intelligent system that integrates energy contracts and operational data to optimise management and control. Their team first laid the foundations in Belgium, but is now looking towards Germany and Spain. Every year, Janne Kindt of Flanders Investment & Trade supports numerous Flemish companies preparing to take their business across borders.

What follows is an open discussion about timing, insights that are rarely shared online, and the reality that even your advisory board can make mistakes.

Too early, too late, just right?

'Don’t jump too early, but don’t jump too late either,' says Janne. It sounds simple, but it isn’t. 'If you suspect a particular market could work, just go there and set up a few meetings. Don’t know anyone yet? Then definitely reach out to our colleagues on the ground. They can make valuable introductions to customers or investors.'

The real challenge is managing both sides at once. 'It takes time to get your foot in the door with that first company, and even longer for a contract to land with the right people. In the meantime, you still have to keep your business running back home. If you wait too long, you’ll miss the momentum in the new market. But if you start early and take a few small steps, you’ll benefit from it sooner or later.'

Whale made a different choice — or rather, no real choice at all. 'We never consciously decided to start in Belgium first and expand later,' says Gary. 'We simply looked at where our product resonated. That turned out to be the US market.' Thanks to advertising in Europe and North America, and an early partnership that brought in 4,000 new customers at once, that international focus was built into the company from the start. 'A European company would never do that, by the way — integrate a start-up product on that scale.' (laughs)

At Companion.energy, regulation and maintenance both play a major role. 'A new market means different algorithms and a software update,' says Thomas. 'And in the US, rules and market structures can even vary from one state to another,' Marie adds, 'which means we have to adapt our software all over again.' For them, the logical order was therefore different: first Belgium, then the Netherlands, because of the shared language and the warm introduction an existing client such as Proximus could make to a customer like KPN. 'At the moment, we’re mainly looking at international customers within our existing client base,' says Marie. 'If we can move abroad together with them, we can ride that wave. One reference client in a particular market acts as a stamp of trust for everyone else.'

How to make it in a new market?

Surely you don’t just go and knock on the door of a few new prospects? 'Actually, yes,' says Thomas. 'That’s exactly what you should do. Approach new customers, show up at local events and make sure people get to know your face.'

'We were selected for the German accelerator BRYCK Startup Alliance,' says Marie. 'That’s how we came into contact with a strong mentor who can also introduce us to new customers. But in the end, you just have to do it yourself.'

'No one is going to write your international story for you,' Janne agrees. 'People will help, each adding a new piece to the puzzle, but you have to finish it yourself. You have to drive up and down that autobahn yourself and take the occasional strange exit.' (laughs) 'And you can’t give up.'

Thomas is sceptical about over-preparation when it comes to expanding abroad. 'It’s sometimes approached in an excessively rational way. Consultants, expensive market studies — I’m not interested in any of that.' Everyone laughs, partly because he says it with such force. 

'But it’s true, isn’t it?' he continues. 'At the end of the day, you know the product, and you know what works. Our platform is in English, so the British market makes sense; the Chinese market doesn’t. That’s just logic. Beyond that, you also need a bit of luck. That serendipity of a customer who just happens to walk in, or someone having a connection in a specific country. And then you just go for it.'

Cultural differences

Whale functions in a remote work setup abroad. No office. No travel. That clearly gives the others around the table pause. 'Actually, we hardly ever see the vast majority of our customers,' says Gary. 'Everything happens over Zoom, often directly with someone at C-level.' That has one major advantage: speed. 'Even when it’s a $50,000 deal, they just get out their credit card and pay. No further questions asked.'

Europe works differently. 'We’d now like to move into the European market,' Gary says with a laugh. 'So I’m very keen to hear your insights. It often takes such a long time to get a deal over the line here, even for investments of €3,000 a year. The board has to approve it. The budget has already been allocated. You name it.'

That enthusiasm is a double-edged sword, though. 'One thing I had to get used to is that everything is ‘amazing’ and ‘the best thing ever’,' says Gary. It’s the land of superlatives. 'During a conversation, they can sound incredibly enthusiastic, and then you never hear from them again. It took me a while to see through that and work out what was genuine and what wasn’t. They just don’t seem able to tell you to your face that a deal isn’t happening.' (laughs)

Thomas recognises that too: an over-enthusiastic American who then sends over an NDA full of red flags. 'An agreement that protects them, while leaving us out in the cold,' says Thomas. 'We simply don’t go along with that.'

Boots on the ground

Once you’ve explored a new market, it’s time for the next step. For Companion.energy, the picture is clear: they’re looking for local hires in Spain and Germany. 'Someone who speaks the language and knows the local market,' says Thomas. 'That’s a must,' Janne agrees. 'It costs money, but it’s your only real foot in the door. That language creates a strong foundation.'

'The vacancies have been online for a while,' says Marie, 'but they’ve proved quite difficult to fill. We’re now looking much more actively within our own network. Someone who comes recommended is simply easier to trust.'

For Whale, local presence looks rather different. 'We have a team of eight people in the United States, but no office,' says Gary. 'Our advisory board strongly recommended opening one. According to them, that was the only way this would ever work. But we’ve proved them wrong.' (laughs) 'At first, I sold the product myself. Endless evenings on Zoom calls — you’ve no idea. But once I understood what worked, I was able to write it down and pass it on to local team members.'

'That just goes to show,' says Janne. 'There is no fixed playbook. There are 101 factors you need to think about before taking the leap: your product, your family, your location, your market, your advisory board. I often see companies pursuing every opportunity that arises. Sometimes, it's necessary to be strict and make firm choices. Which conferences are really worth it? Just because I email you about a tech event like Slush doesn’t mean you have to go. Be critical, pick up the phone and talk it through with me.'

Europe as an advantage

Foreign customers don’t lose any sleep over the fact that they’re working with a Belgian company. 'Nobody cares,' says Thomas. But there are advantages that matter. 'We’re European, and that makes us very strong from a regulatory point of view,' says Gary. 'GDPR, the AI Act — that inspires confidence.' 'The fact that Belgium has an advanced energy market,' Thomas adds, 'really works in our favour. If you can show that your solution works in a complex market like Belgium, Germans are often quite impressed.'

The same goes for employees. Whale recently advertised a vacancy for a Customer Success Manager in the United States. Within a week, they had 350 applicants. 'People are looking for work and finding nothing, because the market has imploded,' says Gary. 'Employees have far less protection in America. You can get fired from one day to the next, with pay until the end of the week. That’s it. We offer our employees over there the same contract as here: two months’ notice and half a day off if they need to see a doctor.' (laughs) 'Seriously, they’re just not used to that. We may not be making enough of those advantages yet.'

What no one shares on LinkedIn

'To be honest,' says Gary, 'LinkedIn is to me what Instagram is to my wife. When she scrolls through her feed, it eats away at her confidence. When I go on LinkedIn, I feel exactly the same about our company. And I know that only 1% of those users are posting huge success stories, but it’s impossible not to compare yourself.'

Although Whale is now doing well in the US, Gary is quick to point out that their first attempt failed. 'We’d hired a team,' he says, 'but we weren’t mature enough yet. We were still figuring a lot of things out ourselves, which meant our approach wasn’t clear. First, you have to prove it yourself. Only then did we really take off.'

As far as Gary is concerned, failure should become a bit more normal. 'I’d like to see more posts about situations where someone made a mistake. Why not? I think, as Flemish people, we’re still too embarrassed about that. We think we have to sort it out ourselves, behind closed doors.'

Janne recognises that. 'But if you sit down for a coffee with someone who just posted about a major funding round the day before,' he says, 'their insecurities come to the surface too. Everyone struggles: employees who aren’t the right fit, advisory board members who complain. But no one talks about that publicly.'

More openness about what’s difficult would be welcome. 'Sometimes we see companies that are already backed into a corner,' Janne continues. 'And then I think: why did you wait so long? FIT staff are always available to give advice. It’s also worth checking what VLAIO offers — for instance, the ‘Schaalklaar’ grant. You’re more likely to raise funds that way than by waiting for an investor to come knocking tomorrow.' (laughs)

What to take with you

'What’s great about the Ghent ecosystem,' says Gary, 'is that so many fellow entrepreneurs share their insights on both success and failure. At the heart of it, there are always nuggets,  small things, you can take with you on your own journey. I think it’s good to stay open to that, without copying everything blindly.'

What final advice would they give? 'Cheap it till you make it,' says Thomas. 'Book a cheap Eurostar ticket and head to Paris or London. Talk to a few entrepreneurs there. You really don’t need an office straight away. Think big, but start very small.'

'Exactly,' says Gary. 'I would say: try it yourself first. Only you can judge what does and doesn’t work for something you’ve built from scratch. If you can’t make it work yourself, even on a small scale, a new hire certainly won’t do it for you. Find your proof first.'