Tesla's Market Entry Strategy in Germany. Foreign Market Entry and Cross-Cultural Business

Academic Paper from the year 2020 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: A+, , course: Cross-Cultural Business, language: English, abstract: The purpose of this paper is to analyze and evaluate the market entry of Tesla Inc. in Germany. In November 2019, Tesla revealed to build a European production plant on the outskirts of Berlin in Germany. The aim of this paper is to give account to the foreign market entry of Tesla Inc. in Germany. This leads to the following research question that guides this paper: What could be business success factors and threats of Tesla's strategy to enter the German automotive industry market? Tesla Inc. (former Tesla Motors Inc.) is a car manufacturer and sells fully electric vehicles, energy storage systems as well as installs, operates and maintains solar and energy storage products (Reuters, n.d.). The company was founded in 2003 by a group of engineers. In 2008 Tesla launched their first electric vehicle to the market (Tesla, n.d.). 'Tesla's mission is to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy', so the car manufacturer. So far most of the Tesla vehicles are produced and assembled in the United States at its main Tesla Factory in Fremont, California. To that Tesla operates other, multiple production and assembly plants, named Gigafactory, such as in Fremont, California (Giga Nevada) and in Buffalo, New York (Giga New York). Recently, in 2019, Tesla opened its first Gigafactory outside the American region in Shanghai, China (Giga Shanghai). A strategic step to internationalize the company and to enter the Chinese market. This strategic action can be explained by the fact that China is the largest car market in the world and the government is speeding up the expansion of electric mobility. Furthermore, manufacturing in Shanghai saves Tesla from having to transport its vehicles overseas and avoids import duties incurred in China for cars from the United States. However, the company is not just expanding its manufacturing into China.