You may have recently seen the sad tale of the successful UK cheese business, the Cheshire Cheese Company, who had to sell off their firm after losing £600,000 of sales after Brexit. The company that eventually took over the cheese business was one that had cleverly set up a presence in the EU already, making it easier for them to maintain their European sales.
If you’re a UK business that exports to Europe, then the current difficulties with increased paperwork, tax and customs after Brexit will no doubt be affecting your sales and your income. The main issues are costly health certificates needed on particular food products and the fact that some couriers and hauliers refuse to accept certain export products from the UK to the EU in case of hold-ups with paperwork.
As was demonstrated by the company that took over the Cheshire Cheese Company, one way to make a profit and plug the hole of lost European sales would be to set up an operation in Europe. Setting up a presence in Europe may seem like a big step, but it could actually help to moderate some of those losses in the long run and potentially provide an even bigger market of consumers due to the added bonus of a new EU location.
Related article: How to start a business in France in 8 steps
Choosing your country to set up your new operation however needs careful consideration. Tax implications, ease of doing business and whereabouts in Europe your product might find its perfect niche, all needs to be taken into account. Take a look at our article on the Best Country to Start a Business in Europe which will give you a few ideas about the top destinations for business. Or if you’re looking more closely into the economics and financial side, you can also see how each individual country is doing in our article about the Fastest Growing Economies in Europe.
We also have a free 27-page guide which takes you through step-by-step the process of opening a company or branch in a European country. This includes everything from useful company formation info, choosing a business structure, finding a registered address, how to open a business bank account, tax rates, VAT payments, and how to deal with accountancy. Plus, it comes with profiles of the top European countries including all the benefits and pitfalls of that location. You can find the guide below at the end of this article. There are also specific guides to company formation in France and Ireland too, just below.
Related article: Why you should be setting up a company in Ireland
If you’ve already chosen your country and want to find out more about how to open a company in that specific destination, visit our Company Formation page in the menu above and click on the flag of the country that interests you. Or if you want to get our expert advice, feel free to contact our friendly bilingual team on 0033 (0)1 53 57 49 10 or email us from our contact page and we’ll be happy to help.
