Die Wette vor dem Aufschwung

German factory orders jumped 3.1% in June, and machinery orders alone rose 12.7%. After three to four hard years, the recovery might actually be starting. There's just one problem with the timing:

The moment the orders land, every bit of capacity goes into shipping what you already sold.

You won't have time to think about growth, and you'll just think about delivering.

So the bet on your next market has to be placed before the recovery arrives.

The work happens now, while it's still quiet.

Start with your own market. Understand very well how it is performing, where you grew, and where you didn't.

Then compare that against adjacent markets and those that are booming. Look at what's growing elsewhere, not just how your own sector feels.

And then ask whether your current market can still carry you, or whether you need to move into a sector you were never really in.

One of our clients manufactures specialized seals, and they're in the middle of exactly this exercise.

For them: some of their markets are booming, while others are growing slowly.

Right now they are looking at a rising sector they were never in. New for them, growing fast, and a place where their experience might apply.

Nothing is won there yet.

They are just scouting, but that is the whole point of doing it now.