Case study ยท Feasibility Study
A $25M opportunity, and a clear pathway to reach it
How a feasibility study gave a European manufacturer the evidence to decide whether, and how, to enter Australia.
CLIENT European building products manufacturer
Annual revenue by Year 3
The situation
An established European building products manufacturer had a strong home market, a well-regarded product range and a board interested in Australia. What it didn't have was local knowledge: no presence here, no market data and no clear view of what entry would cost, how long it would take or what it would return.
The board wanted an independent answer before committing capital.
The problem
Market entry decisions are often made on enthusiasm: a promising conversation at a trade show, a distributor's pitch, or the assumption that what sells at home will sell here. In building products, that assumption is especially risky. Australian certification, specification practices and trade norms are different, and a business can spend a year or more getting approved before it earns a dollar.
The turning point
Knowing what not to sell turned out to be as valuable as knowing what to sell.
One product category looked like a natural part of the range to bring to Australia. It had been tried here before, by another European importer, and it hadn't worked. The economics of importing that category simply didn't stack up against local supply. Taking it out of the plan meant the investment could focus on the products where European manufacturing gave a genuine advantage.
What we did
The study was structured in five phases, built around the board's own terms of reference:
- Market analysis: market size by sector and region, the competitive landscape, pricing and margins, and major infrastructure projects the range could target
- Regulatory and compliance: the Australian certification pathway for the range, with costs, timelines and required product changes
- Entry strategy: organic entry compared with acquisition, including staffing, premises, stock, IT and working capital
- Financial projections: a five-year financial model covering investment, breakeven and return
- Recommendations: a staged entry plan with approval conditions, decision gates and immediate next steps
The result
The study identified an opportunity worth $25M in annual revenue by Year 3, and it set out exactly what it would cost to get there. Every cost of entry was identified and priced: certification and product changes, recruitment and staffing, premises, stock, IT, working capital and the cost of setting up locally. That gave the board a full investment figure, a breakeven point and an expected return, not just a revenue number.
The recommended pathway was organic entry focused on the strongest product lines, with a certification critical path of 12 to 18 months. The plan was also built so the board didn't have to commit everything at once. A go/no-go review at Month 12 allowed progress to be tested before full investment, and an acquisition route was set out as an alternative if the board wanted to move faster.
Client details withheld for confidentiality.
What this means for your business
Entering a new market, or launching a new product line, is one of the biggest bets a business makes. Most of the risk sits in the assumptions nobody tested.
If you're weighing up a new market or a major expansion and you're not sure whether the numbers stack up, guessing won't fix it. A feasibility study gives you the evidence to commit, adjust or walk away before the real money is spent.