Market entry in Mexico<\/h1><\/div>Alxedo: a German clean tech start-up in Mexico<\/h2><\/div>Alxedo is a German clean tech startup, operating in Mexico as its first market. Founded by Samuel Sellmann and Kai Werthmann in 2020, Alxedo is creating the world\u2019s first digital ecosystem of water. It took them three years to find their “golden path” on how to succeed in the Mexican market. Read more in this success story.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
![\"Alxedo](\"https:\/\/www.germancentre.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/alxedo-founders-800x564.png\" "\\"Alxedo")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The vision of a plastic-free world<\/h3><\/div>How German Start-up Alxedo found its market entry strategy<\/h4><\/div>During their postgraduate studies of Business Administration in London, Kai Werthmann and Samuel Sellmann developed the vision of a plastic free world. The initial spark was a documentary, published by the Gates Foundation, about the huge environmental problems caused by the usage of plastic bottles. From their time in Asia and Latin America, both knew that easy access to pure water is a big challenge in these regions. Tap water is often contaminated or not reliably available. One day, they brainstormed in a small pizza place in East London \u2013 and agreed: We want to offer people a convenient, accessible, and trustworthy alternative to bottled water<\/strong>.<\/p>\nNick Junge, Business Development Manager at German Centre Mexico met with Co-Founder and Co-CEO Samuel Sellmann in the German Centre to learn more about the company\u2019s journey and developing a business in country.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Product testing under real conditions<\/h3><\/div>Showcase and pre-market test your innovations<\/h5><\/div>For over 20 years, German Centre Mexico has been supporting companies with its business development in the Mexican market. Besides providing flexible workspace<\/strong>, the business centre is also a platform for networking and product showcasing<\/strong>. So does Alxedo and showcases its products in the German Centre\u2019s pantries. This way, they get a easy access to their target group and direct feedback from users.<\/p>\n<\/div>- <\/i><\/span>\n
Use the German Centre for soft launches<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Conduct product tests under real conditions<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>Get a budget-friendly access to a test market<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Gain genuine user feedback<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Interview<\/h3><\/div><\/div><\/div>Hello Samuel. Thank you for meeting with me today. Let’s get right to the start: Tell our readers about your innovative product!<\/h4><\/div>Hi Nick, thanks for having me. Of course, I would love to. We developed a smart water purifier,<\/strong> our ALX1, that monitors water quality in real-time via an intuitive mobile app. With our technology, households and companies can rest assured that their filtered tap water is safe for consumption without the need to continuously buy bottled water. Our latest product, the ALXfizz, extends our offer to sparkling water and even sugar free soda drinks. With our solutions, we provide easy access to clean drinking water<\/strong> and thus reduce the consumption of single-use plastics<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>As you said, there are many regions, where you would find a market for your smart water purifying technology. Why did you choose Mexico to develop your company?<\/h4><\/div>There are mainly two reasons, why we decided to start in Mexico: First, Mexico has the highest bottled water consumption per capita globally. In combination with further factors, such as a solid economic growth, a growing middle class,<\/strong> and the ease of doing business<\/strong> here, this led to our decision to start in Mexico.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>![\"inforgraphic](\"https:\/\/www.germancentre.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Asset-2@8x-400x205.png\" "\\"inforgraphic")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>And second, Kai has already lived in Mexico for a couple of years and he burns for the country. Knowing the country, its structures and culture helped us a lot, particularly with our first steps here.<\/p>\n
We are the first sustainable brand for homemade beverages in Latin America \u2013 which makes us a little proud.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
You have started your company\u2019s journey three years ago. I\u2018m pretty sure that your experience will be helpful for start-ups in a similar situation. Maybe you can share some insights about the ups and downs you went through?<\/h4><\/div>Of course and I will start with my most important advice to anybody who wants to start a company: Don\u2019t be tricked to believe that your journey will be linear!<\/p>\n
During the development phase of our product, we basically received only feedback from close friends and family and felt that our product is going to be absolutely amazing, and that it will be perceived as a game changer in the market.<\/p>\n<\/div>
<\/div>This feeling of a “pre-market high<\/strong>” is relatively normal due to the fact that you are so invested in the development process and would obviously not create something you don\u2019t like.<\/p>\nHowever, it is a very dangerous bias, since you are not necessarily the best representative of your own target market and therefore, you don\u2019t know, if the market will really perceive it with the same enthusiasm. The hype and feeling is great to carry you through the bootstrapping time at the beginning, however, you should collect good feedback as quick as you can.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
![\"alxedo's](\"https:\/\/www.germancentre.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/alxedos-journey-800x450.png\" "\\"alxedo’s")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Then you started the product market testing. How did that go? Did you fall into any pitfalls?<\/h4><\/div>In the product market testing<\/strong> phase, we actually gathered the first real feedback for our product. This was very positive and promising. The only thing we neglected at this time was how we use the feedback and the insights of our target market to derive a proper commercial strategy from that.<\/p>\nThus, we spent a lot of time in the \u201cHow do we launch?<\/strong>\u201d phase The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, led to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers. A problem which cost us time and money, yet, could have been solved if we would have spent more time on this question before.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>However, in the end you made it and found a suitable go-to-market strategy!<\/h4><\/div>Yes, we found our golden path<\/strong>: After losing time and money for 6 months, figuring out how to commercialize our products, we found our \u201cgolden path\u201d and realized that retail outlets are the best way to start selling our products. Luckily, the time of trial and error hasn\u2019t been too long, and we recovered quickly from that.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>![\"Alxedo](\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27711%27%20height%3D%27504%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20711%20504%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27711%27%20height%3D%27504%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\")
<\/div><\/div>The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, les to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers.<\/p>\n<\/div>
Samuel Sellmann
\nCo-Founder and Co-CEO of Alxedo<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The formal founding process in a foreign country can be tricky and time-consuming. How did you approach this task?<\/h4><\/div>During the time we incorporated Alxedo legally in Mexico, Kai and I haven\u2019t been physically present in Mexico and did not have any experience with the Mexican corporate laws<\/strong>. Therefore, we decided to initiate the process with the help of an international law, audit and consulting firm. However, I have to admit that we were not happy with their service. We contracted them through a contact, but it became obvious that our account wasn\u2019t a big ticket for them and hence, they didn\u2019t really care about it.
\nAfter several weeks had passed, we decided to contract someone smaller and local to help us. With the new service provider, we proceeded twice as fast with less expenses.<\/p>\nAs a foreigner, doing it all by yourself when you don\u2019t have the experience, is not recommendable. But the big names are not necessarily the best choice, despite being the costliest option. Retrospectively, I would recommend activating your personal network in Mexico<\/strong> and ask for feedback on how they started off their business and with whom they worked. The German Centre and its network is also a good source to find service providers. This helped us a lot, but we had to learn it the hard way.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Go-to-market in Mexico<\/h4><\/div>Establishing a company in Mexico is an important step that should be well prepared.<\/h5><\/div>
Alxedo: a German clean tech start-up in Mexico<\/h2><\/div>Alxedo is a German clean tech startup, operating in Mexico as its first market. Founded by Samuel Sellmann and Kai Werthmann in 2020, Alxedo is creating the world\u2019s first digital ecosystem of water. It took them three years to find their “golden path” on how to succeed in the Mexican market. Read more in this success story.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The vision of a plastic-free world<\/h3><\/div>How German Start-up Alxedo found its market entry strategy<\/h4><\/div>During their postgraduate studies of Business Administration in London, Kai Werthmann and Samuel Sellmann developed the vision of a plastic free world. The initial spark was a documentary, published by the Gates Foundation, about the huge environmental problems caused by the usage of plastic bottles. From their time in Asia and Latin America, both knew that easy access to pure water is a big challenge in these regions. Tap water is often contaminated or not reliably available. One day, they brainstormed in a small pizza place in East London \u2013 and agreed: We want to offer people a convenient, accessible, and trustworthy alternative to bottled water<\/strong>.<\/p>\nNick Junge, Business Development Manager at German Centre Mexico met with Co-Founder and Co-CEO Samuel Sellmann in the German Centre to learn more about the company\u2019s journey and developing a business in country.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Product testing under real conditions<\/h3><\/div>Showcase and pre-market test your innovations<\/h5><\/div>For over 20 years, German Centre Mexico has been supporting companies with its business development in the Mexican market. Besides providing flexible workspace<\/strong>, the business centre is also a platform for networking and product showcasing<\/strong>. So does Alxedo and showcases its products in the German Centre\u2019s pantries. This way, they get a easy access to their target group and direct feedback from users.<\/p>\n<\/div>- <\/i><\/span>\n
Use the German Centre for soft launches<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Conduct product tests under real conditions<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>Get a budget-friendly access to a test market<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Gain genuine user feedback<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Interview<\/h3><\/div><\/div><\/div>Hello Samuel. Thank you for meeting with me today. Let’s get right to the start: Tell our readers about your innovative product!<\/h4><\/div>Hi Nick, thanks for having me. Of course, I would love to. We developed a smart water purifier,<\/strong> our ALX1, that monitors water quality in real-time via an intuitive mobile app. With our technology, households and companies can rest assured that their filtered tap water is safe for consumption without the need to continuously buy bottled water. Our latest product, the ALXfizz, extends our offer to sparkling water and even sugar free soda drinks. With our solutions, we provide easy access to clean drinking water<\/strong> and thus reduce the consumption of single-use plastics<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>As you said, there are many regions, where you would find a market for your smart water purifying technology. Why did you choose Mexico to develop your company?<\/h4><\/div>There are mainly two reasons, why we decided to start in Mexico: First, Mexico has the highest bottled water consumption per capita globally. In combination with further factors, such as a solid economic growth, a growing middle class,<\/strong> and the ease of doing business<\/strong> here, this led to our decision to start in Mexico.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>And second, Kai has already lived in Mexico for a couple of years and he burns for the country. Knowing the country, its structures and culture helped us a lot, particularly with our first steps here.<\/p>\n
We are the first sustainable brand for homemade beverages in Latin America \u2013 which makes us a little proud.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
You have started your company\u2019s journey three years ago. I\u2018m pretty sure that your experience will be helpful for start-ups in a similar situation. Maybe you can share some insights about the ups and downs you went through?<\/h4><\/div>Of course and I will start with my most important advice to anybody who wants to start a company: Don\u2019t be tricked to believe that your journey will be linear!<\/p>\n
During the development phase of our product, we basically received only feedback from close friends and family and felt that our product is going to be absolutely amazing, and that it will be perceived as a game changer in the market.<\/p>\n<\/div>
<\/div>This feeling of a “pre-market high<\/strong>” is relatively normal due to the fact that you are so invested in the development process and would obviously not create something you don\u2019t like.<\/p>\nHowever, it is a very dangerous bias, since you are not necessarily the best representative of your own target market and therefore, you don\u2019t know, if the market will really perceive it with the same enthusiasm. The hype and feeling is great to carry you through the bootstrapping time at the beginning, however, you should collect good feedback as quick as you can.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Then you started the product market testing. How did that go? Did you fall into any pitfalls?<\/h4><\/div>In the product market testing<\/strong> phase, we actually gathered the first real feedback for our product. This was very positive and promising. The only thing we neglected at this time was how we use the feedback and the insights of our target market to derive a proper commercial strategy from that.<\/p>\nThus, we spent a lot of time in the \u201cHow do we launch?<\/strong>\u201d phase The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, led to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers. A problem which cost us time and money, yet, could have been solved if we would have spent more time on this question before.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>However, in the end you made it and found a suitable go-to-market strategy!<\/h4><\/div>Yes, we found our golden path<\/strong>: After losing time and money for 6 months, figuring out how to commercialize our products, we found our \u201cgolden path\u201d and realized that retail outlets are the best way to start selling our products. Luckily, the time of trial and error hasn\u2019t been too long, and we recovered quickly from that.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, les to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers.<\/p>\n<\/div>
Samuel Sellmann
\nCo-Founder and Co-CEO of Alxedo<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The formal founding process in a foreign country can be tricky and time-consuming. How did you approach this task?<\/h4><\/div>During the time we incorporated Alxedo legally in Mexico, Kai and I haven\u2019t been physically present in Mexico and did not have any experience with the Mexican corporate laws<\/strong>. Therefore, we decided to initiate the process with the help of an international law, audit and consulting firm. However, I have to admit that we were not happy with their service. We contracted them through a contact, but it became obvious that our account wasn\u2019t a big ticket for them and hence, they didn\u2019t really care about it.
\nAfter several weeks had passed, we decided to contract someone smaller and local to help us. With the new service provider, we proceeded twice as fast with less expenses.<\/p>\nAs a foreigner, doing it all by yourself when you don\u2019t have the experience, is not recommendable. But the big names are not necessarily the best choice, despite being the costliest option. Retrospectively, I would recommend activating your personal network in Mexico<\/strong> and ask for feedback on how they started off their business and with whom they worked. The German Centre and its network is also a good source to find service providers. This helped us a lot, but we had to learn it the hard way.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Go-to-market in Mexico<\/h4><\/div>Establishing a company in Mexico is an important step that should be well prepared.<\/h5><\/div>
Alxedo is a German clean tech startup, operating in Mexico as its first market. Founded by Samuel Sellmann and Kai Werthmann in 2020, Alxedo is creating the world\u2019s first digital ecosystem of water. It took them three years to find their “golden path” on how to succeed in the Mexican market. Read more in this success story.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The vision of a plastic-free world<\/h3><\/div>How German Start-up Alxedo found its market entry strategy<\/h4><\/div>During their postgraduate studies of Business Administration in London, Kai Werthmann and Samuel Sellmann developed the vision of a plastic free world. The initial spark was a documentary, published by the Gates Foundation, about the huge environmental problems caused by the usage of plastic bottles. From their time in Asia and Latin America, both knew that easy access to pure water is a big challenge in these regions. Tap water is often contaminated or not reliably available. One day, they brainstormed in a small pizza place in East London \u2013 and agreed: We want to offer people a convenient, accessible, and trustworthy alternative to bottled water<\/strong>.<\/p>\nNick Junge, Business Development Manager at German Centre Mexico met with Co-Founder and Co-CEO Samuel Sellmann in the German Centre to learn more about the company\u2019s journey and developing a business in country.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Product testing under real conditions<\/h3><\/div>Showcase and pre-market test your innovations<\/h5><\/div>For over 20 years, German Centre Mexico has been supporting companies with its business development in the Mexican market. Besides providing flexible workspace<\/strong>, the business centre is also a platform for networking and product showcasing<\/strong>. So does Alxedo and showcases its products in the German Centre\u2019s pantries. This way, they get a easy access to their target group and direct feedback from users.<\/p>\n<\/div>- <\/i><\/span>\n
Use the German Centre for soft launches<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Conduct product tests under real conditions<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>Get a budget-friendly access to a test market<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Gain genuine user feedback<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Interview<\/h3><\/div><\/div><\/div>Hello Samuel. Thank you for meeting with me today. Let’s get right to the start: Tell our readers about your innovative product!<\/h4><\/div>Hi Nick, thanks for having me. Of course, I would love to. We developed a smart water purifier,<\/strong> our ALX1, that monitors water quality in real-time via an intuitive mobile app. With our technology, households and companies can rest assured that their filtered tap water is safe for consumption without the need to continuously buy bottled water. Our latest product, the ALXfizz, extends our offer to sparkling water and even sugar free soda drinks. With our solutions, we provide easy access to clean drinking water<\/strong> and thus reduce the consumption of single-use plastics<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>As you said, there are many regions, where you would find a market for your smart water purifying technology. Why did you choose Mexico to develop your company?<\/h4><\/div>There are mainly two reasons, why we decided to start in Mexico: First, Mexico has the highest bottled water consumption per capita globally. In combination with further factors, such as a solid economic growth, a growing middle class,<\/strong> and the ease of doing business<\/strong> here, this led to our decision to start in Mexico.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>And second, Kai has already lived in Mexico for a couple of years and he burns for the country. Knowing the country, its structures and culture helped us a lot, particularly with our first steps here.<\/p>\n
We are the first sustainable brand for homemade beverages in Latin America \u2013 which makes us a little proud.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
You have started your company\u2019s journey three years ago. I\u2018m pretty sure that your experience will be helpful for start-ups in a similar situation. Maybe you can share some insights about the ups and downs you went through?<\/h4><\/div>Of course and I will start with my most important advice to anybody who wants to start a company: Don\u2019t be tricked to believe that your journey will be linear!<\/p>\n
During the development phase of our product, we basically received only feedback from close friends and family and felt that our product is going to be absolutely amazing, and that it will be perceived as a game changer in the market.<\/p>\n<\/div>
<\/div>This feeling of a “pre-market high<\/strong>” is relatively normal due to the fact that you are so invested in the development process and would obviously not create something you don\u2019t like.<\/p>\nHowever, it is a very dangerous bias, since you are not necessarily the best representative of your own target market and therefore, you don\u2019t know, if the market will really perceive it with the same enthusiasm. The hype and feeling is great to carry you through the bootstrapping time at the beginning, however, you should collect good feedback as quick as you can.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Then you started the product market testing. How did that go? Did you fall into any pitfalls?<\/h4><\/div>In the product market testing<\/strong> phase, we actually gathered the first real feedback for our product. This was very positive and promising. The only thing we neglected at this time was how we use the feedback and the insights of our target market to derive a proper commercial strategy from that.<\/p>\nThus, we spent a lot of time in the \u201cHow do we launch?<\/strong>\u201d phase The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, led to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers. A problem which cost us time and money, yet, could have been solved if we would have spent more time on this question before.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>However, in the end you made it and found a suitable go-to-market strategy!<\/h4><\/div>Yes, we found our golden path<\/strong>: After losing time and money for 6 months, figuring out how to commercialize our products, we found our \u201cgolden path\u201d and realized that retail outlets are the best way to start selling our products. Luckily, the time of trial and error hasn\u2019t been too long, and we recovered quickly from that.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, les to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers.<\/p>\n<\/div>
Samuel Sellmann
\nCo-Founder and Co-CEO of Alxedo<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The formal founding process in a foreign country can be tricky and time-consuming. How did you approach this task?<\/h4><\/div>During the time we incorporated Alxedo legally in Mexico, Kai and I haven\u2019t been physically present in Mexico and did not have any experience with the Mexican corporate laws<\/strong>. Therefore, we decided to initiate the process with the help of an international law, audit and consulting firm. However, I have to admit that we were not happy with their service. We contracted them through a contact, but it became obvious that our account wasn\u2019t a big ticket for them and hence, they didn\u2019t really care about it.
\nAfter several weeks had passed, we decided to contract someone smaller and local to help us. With the new service provider, we proceeded twice as fast with less expenses.<\/p>\nAs a foreigner, doing it all by yourself when you don\u2019t have the experience, is not recommendable. But the big names are not necessarily the best choice, despite being the costliest option. Retrospectively, I would recommend activating your personal network in Mexico<\/strong> and ask for feedback on how they started off their business and with whom they worked. The German Centre and its network is also a good source to find service providers. This helped us a lot, but we had to learn it the hard way.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Go-to-market in Mexico<\/h4><\/div>Establishing a company in Mexico is an important step that should be well prepared.<\/h5><\/div>
How German Start-up Alxedo found its market entry strategy<\/h4><\/div>During their postgraduate studies of Business Administration in London, Kai Werthmann and Samuel Sellmann developed the vision of a plastic free world. The initial spark was a documentary, published by the Gates Foundation, about the huge environmental problems caused by the usage of plastic bottles. From their time in Asia and Latin America, both knew that easy access to pure water is a big challenge in these regions. Tap water is often contaminated or not reliably available. One day, they brainstormed in a small pizza place in East London \u2013 and agreed: We want to offer people a convenient, accessible, and trustworthy alternative to bottled water<\/strong>.<\/p>\nNick Junge, Business Development Manager at German Centre Mexico met with Co-Founder and Co-CEO Samuel Sellmann in the German Centre to learn more about the company\u2019s journey and developing a business in country.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Product testing under real conditions<\/h3><\/div>Showcase and pre-market test your innovations<\/h5><\/div>For over 20 years, German Centre Mexico has been supporting companies with its business development in the Mexican market. Besides providing flexible workspace<\/strong>, the business centre is also a platform for networking and product showcasing<\/strong>. So does Alxedo and showcases its products in the German Centre\u2019s pantries. This way, they get a easy access to their target group and direct feedback from users.<\/p>\n<\/div>- <\/i><\/span>\n
Use the German Centre for soft launches<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Conduct product tests under real conditions<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>Get a budget-friendly access to a test market<\/div><\/li>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
Gain genuine user feedback<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Interview<\/h3><\/div><\/div><\/div>Hello Samuel. Thank you for meeting with me today. Let’s get right to the start: Tell our readers about your innovative product!<\/h4><\/div>Hi Nick, thanks for having me. Of course, I would love to. We developed a smart water purifier,<\/strong> our ALX1, that monitors water quality in real-time via an intuitive mobile app. With our technology, households and companies can rest assured that their filtered tap water is safe for consumption without the need to continuously buy bottled water. Our latest product, the ALXfizz, extends our offer to sparkling water and even sugar free soda drinks. With our solutions, we provide easy access to clean drinking water<\/strong> and thus reduce the consumption of single-use plastics<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>As you said, there are many regions, where you would find a market for your smart water purifying technology. Why did you choose Mexico to develop your company?<\/h4><\/div>There are mainly two reasons, why we decided to start in Mexico: First, Mexico has the highest bottled water consumption per capita globally. In combination with further factors, such as a solid economic growth, a growing middle class,<\/strong> and the ease of doing business<\/strong> here, this led to our decision to start in Mexico.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>And second, Kai has already lived in Mexico for a couple of years and he burns for the country. Knowing the country, its structures and culture helped us a lot, particularly with our first steps here.<\/p>\n
We are the first sustainable brand for homemade beverages in Latin America \u2013 which makes us a little proud.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
You have started your company\u2019s journey three years ago. I\u2018m pretty sure that your experience will be helpful for start-ups in a similar situation. Maybe you can share some insights about the ups and downs you went through?<\/h4><\/div>Of course and I will start with my most important advice to anybody who wants to start a company: Don\u2019t be tricked to believe that your journey will be linear!<\/p>\n
During the development phase of our product, we basically received only feedback from close friends and family and felt that our product is going to be absolutely amazing, and that it will be perceived as a game changer in the market.<\/p>\n<\/div>
<\/div>This feeling of a “pre-market high<\/strong>” is relatively normal due to the fact that you are so invested in the development process and would obviously not create something you don\u2019t like.<\/p>\nHowever, it is a very dangerous bias, since you are not necessarily the best representative of your own target market and therefore, you don\u2019t know, if the market will really perceive it with the same enthusiasm. The hype and feeling is great to carry you through the bootstrapping time at the beginning, however, you should collect good feedback as quick as you can.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Then you started the product market testing. How did that go? Did you fall into any pitfalls?<\/h4><\/div>In the product market testing<\/strong> phase, we actually gathered the first real feedback for our product. This was very positive and promising. The only thing we neglected at this time was how we use the feedback and the insights of our target market to derive a proper commercial strategy from that.<\/p>\nThus, we spent a lot of time in the \u201cHow do we launch?<\/strong>\u201d phase The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, led to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers. A problem which cost us time and money, yet, could have been solved if we would have spent more time on this question before.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>However, in the end you made it and found a suitable go-to-market strategy!<\/h4><\/div>Yes, we found our golden path<\/strong>: After losing time and money for 6 months, figuring out how to commercialize our products, we found our \u201cgolden path\u201d and realized that retail outlets are the best way to start selling our products. Luckily, the time of trial and error hasn\u2019t been too long, and we recovered quickly from that.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, les to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers.<\/p>\n<\/div>
Samuel Sellmann
\nCo-Founder and Co-CEO of Alxedo<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The formal founding process in a foreign country can be tricky and time-consuming. How did you approach this task?<\/h4><\/div>During the time we incorporated Alxedo legally in Mexico, Kai and I haven\u2019t been physically present in Mexico and did not have any experience with the Mexican corporate laws<\/strong>. Therefore, we decided to initiate the process with the help of an international law, audit and consulting firm. However, I have to admit that we were not happy with their service. We contracted them through a contact, but it became obvious that our account wasn\u2019t a big ticket for them and hence, they didn\u2019t really care about it.
\nAfter several weeks had passed, we decided to contract someone smaller and local to help us. With the new service provider, we proceeded twice as fast with less expenses.<\/p>\nAs a foreigner, doing it all by yourself when you don\u2019t have the experience, is not recommendable. But the big names are not necessarily the best choice, despite being the costliest option. Retrospectively, I would recommend activating your personal network in Mexico<\/strong> and ask for feedback on how they started off their business and with whom they worked. The German Centre and its network is also a good source to find service providers. This helped us a lot, but we had to learn it the hard way.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Go-to-market in Mexico<\/h4><\/div>Establishing a company in Mexico is an important step that should be well prepared.<\/h5><\/div>
During their postgraduate studies of Business Administration in London, Kai Werthmann and Samuel Sellmann developed the vision of a plastic free world. The initial spark was a documentary, published by the Gates Foundation, about the huge environmental problems caused by the usage of plastic bottles. From their time in Asia and Latin America, both knew that easy access to pure water is a big challenge in these regions. Tap water is often contaminated or not reliably available. One day, they brainstormed in a small pizza place in East London \u2013 and agreed: We want to offer people a convenient, accessible, and trustworthy alternative to bottled water<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Nick Junge, Business Development Manager at German Centre Mexico met with Co-Founder and Co-CEO Samuel Sellmann in the German Centre to learn more about the company\u2019s journey and developing a business in country.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> For over 20 years, German Centre Mexico has been supporting companies with its business development in the Mexican market. Besides providing flexible workspace<\/strong>, the business centre is also a platform for networking and product showcasing<\/strong>. So does Alxedo and showcases its products in the German Centre\u2019s pantries. This way, they get a easy access to their target group and direct feedback from users.<\/p>\n<\/div> Use the German Centre for soft launches<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li> Conduct product tests under real conditions<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li> Gain genuine user feedback<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> Hi Nick, thanks for having me. Of course, I would love to. We developed a smart water purifier,<\/strong> our ALX1, that monitors water quality in real-time via an intuitive mobile app. With our technology, households and companies can rest assured that their filtered tap water is safe for consumption without the need to continuously buy bottled water. Our latest product, the ALXfizz, extends our offer to sparkling water and even sugar free soda drinks. With our solutions, we provide easy access to clean drinking water<\/strong> and thus reduce the consumption of single-use plastics<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div> There are mainly two reasons, why we decided to start in Mexico: First, Mexico has the highest bottled water consumption per capita globally. In combination with further factors, such as a solid economic growth, a growing middle class,<\/strong> and the ease of doing business<\/strong> here, this led to our decision to start in Mexico.<\/p>\n<\/div> And second, Kai has already lived in Mexico for a couple of years and he burns for the country. Knowing the country, its structures and culture helped us a lot, particularly with our first steps here.<\/p>\n We are the first sustainable brand for homemade beverages in Latin America \u2013 which makes us a little proud.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> Of course and I will start with my most important advice to anybody who wants to start a company: Don\u2019t be tricked to believe that your journey will be linear!<\/p>\n During the development phase of our product, we basically received only feedback from close friends and family and felt that our product is going to be absolutely amazing, and that it will be perceived as a game changer in the market.<\/p>\n<\/div> This feeling of a “pre-market high<\/strong>” is relatively normal due to the fact that you are so invested in the development process and would obviously not create something you don\u2019t like.<\/p>\n However, it is a very dangerous bias, since you are not necessarily the best representative of your own target market and therefore, you don\u2019t know, if the market will really perceive it with the same enthusiasm. The hype and feeling is great to carry you through the bootstrapping time at the beginning, however, you should collect good feedback as quick as you can.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div> In the product market testing<\/strong> phase, we actually gathered the first real feedback for our product. This was very positive and promising. The only thing we neglected at this time was how we use the feedback and the insights of our target market to derive a proper commercial strategy from that.<\/p>\n Thus, we spent a lot of time in the \u201cHow do we launch?<\/strong>\u201d phase The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, led to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers. A problem which cost us time and money, yet, could have been solved if we would have spent more time on this question before.<\/p>\n<\/div> Yes, we found our golden path<\/strong>: After losing time and money for 6 months, figuring out how to commercialize our products, we found our \u201cgolden path\u201d and realized that retail outlets are the best way to start selling our products. Luckily, the time of trial and error hasn\u2019t been too long, and we recovered quickly from that.<\/p>\n<\/div> The neglection of the key question, how do we commercialize our product, les to the issue that we created a great product which received extremely positive feedback from our peers, but nevertheless, we did not know how to reach our future customers.<\/p>\n<\/div> Samuel Sellmann During the time we incorporated Alxedo legally in Mexico, Kai and I haven\u2019t been physically present in Mexico and did not have any experience with the Mexican corporate laws<\/strong>. Therefore, we decided to initiate the process with the help of an international law, audit and consulting firm. However, I have to admit that we were not happy with their service. We contracted them through a contact, but it became obvious that our account wasn\u2019t a big ticket for them and hence, they didn\u2019t really care about it. As a foreigner, doing it all by yourself when you don\u2019t have the experience, is not recommendable. But the big names are not necessarily the best choice, despite being the costliest option. Retrospectively, I would recommend activating your personal network in Mexico<\/strong> and ask for feedback on how they started off their business and with whom they worked. The German Centre and its network is also a good source to find service providers. This helped us a lot, but we had to learn it the hard way.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Product testing under real conditions<\/h3><\/div>
Showcase and pre-market test your innovations<\/h5><\/div>
Interview<\/h3><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Hello Samuel. Thank you for meeting with me today. Let’s get right to the start: Tell our readers about your innovative product!<\/h4><\/div>
As you said, there are many regions, where you would find a market for your smart water purifying technology. Why did you choose Mexico to develop your company?<\/h4><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>You have started your company\u2019s journey three years ago. I\u2018m pretty sure that your experience will be helpful for start-ups in a similar situation. Maybe you can share some insights about the ups and downs you went through?<\/h4><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Then you started the product market testing. How did that go? Did you fall into any pitfalls?<\/h4><\/div>
However, in the end you made it and found a suitable go-to-market strategy!<\/h4><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
\nCo-Founder and Co-CEO of Alxedo<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>The formal founding process in a foreign country can be tricky and time-consuming. How did you approach this task?<\/h4><\/div>
\nAfter several weeks had passed, we decided to contract someone smaller and local to help us. With the new service provider, we proceeded twice as fast with less expenses.<\/p>\nGo-to-market in Mexico<\/h4><\/div>
Establishing a company in Mexico is an important step that should be well prepared.<\/h5><\/div>