Danish Entrepreneurs visit Cambodia to explore market potential
Andersen Consult from Aalborg Denmark (new DTCC member) and admits travel arranged a successful business fact finding tour to Cambodia from 17 to 20 January 2012. The group consisted of the network East Asia Frontier Club which has Danish entrepreneurs mainly from Northern and Central Jutland as members. Several of the members have already setup production in Bangladesh, Vietnam or Thailand and they meet 4 times per year to exchange ideas and practical experiences.
One of the meetings is arranged as a four day fact finding mission in a new emerging market and this year the target country was Cambodia. The group going to Cambodia represented Stainless Steel manufacturing, Cooling Technology, Marine Electronics, Food Processing Equipment, Software Development, Wood Processing, Jewelry manufacturing and Second Hand Machinery Renovation.
The network is coordinated by consultant Lars Siggaard Andersen who have long experience in setting up manufacturing and outsourcing in South East Asia and Africa. Mr. Andersen actively support all the companies and share his experience from over 60 such projects to the members in the group.
The network is actively supported by the Danish Government’s Regional Business Incubator Growth House. North Region and Growth House representative Mr. Bjarne Brodersen participated in the program and expressed his full support for this initiative and the “hands on” approach. He noted that his Center will do its utmost to support the activities as they found this very likely to lead to successful projects.
The group met with Mr. Morten Kvammen, CEO SBI Securities, which is a major key player in the Cambodian venture capital market and lead initiator to the Cambodian upcoming stock exchange. The group also had a detailed briefing by investment climate and conditions by H.E. Chea Vuthy, Deputy Secretary general CDC (Council for the development of Cambodia, Cambodian Investment Board). Company visit to Lucky supermarket, the most successful modern retailer in Cambodia where the group met Mr. Heng Hang Meng, the chairman of the Lucky Market Group. Specific requests for products were given to the Danish entrepreneurs for a storage facility and a cooling house. Visit to the Kingdom breweries and interesting experiences from this venture project from present owners and previous partners. Finally a visit to an industry estate where the group got detailed briefing on setting up and operating cost for manufacturing in Cambodia.
The group got a clear impression of the Cambodian market and its challenges, but were also impressed by the open policy to foreign investments and capital flows. With the improved infrastructure and Cambodia’s location in the centre of the Mekong region this will open new interesting opportunities for Danish entrepreneurs who want to be ready for the larger ASEAN free market in 2015.
As a member of the Danish-Thai Chamber of Commerce, Andersen Consulting plans to offer upcoming study tours of this nature to interested DTCC members. The “hands on” approach with a minimum of cocktail receptions and official formal functions has been welcomed by the entrepreneurs who went back to Denmark with a definitive decision to come back to Cambodia and explore further.
DTCC members who are interested in learning more on Cambodia or the Far East Frontier Club can contact:
Lars Siggaard Andersen,
Andersen Consult, Algade 44, 1. 9000 Aalborg, Denmark.
M: +45 2537 5554, E: lsa@andersenconsult.com, W: www.andersenconsult.com
