Practice · Europe ⟶ China
China is a sequencing problem before it is a market problem.
Regulatory approval does not guarantee access. Tier-1 traction does not guarantee national scale. The wrong distributor signed early can cost two years. We work in the order the market allows.
Where entries go wrong
Four failures we see repeatedly
- Entering with the wrong product mix, because the study was done from a desk in Europe.
- Letting the distributor control brand, pricing and registration — and discovering it two years later.
- Treating regulatory approval as the finish line rather than the starting line of access.
- Confusing Tier-1 city success with national scalability.
These mistakes are expensive and, within eighteen to twenty-four months, usually irreversible.
The eight gates
China market entry, step by step
Every one of these requires a different network and a different competence. Neither domestic nor foreign companies hold all eight.
The eight gates, in detail
What each gate decides
| Gate | What it decides |
|---|---|
| 1 · Intellectual property | Trademark, copyright and patent protection, before anything is shown. |
| 2 · Registration | Regulatory strategy and, where possible, a clinical-trial waiver. |
| 3 · Clinical trial | Local planning, execution and case organisation for the regulatory path. |
| 4 · Importation | A clear importation route and the partners it requires. |
| 5 · Distribution | Identifying, qualifying, contracting and then managing distributors. |
| 6 · Market access | Pricing and reimbursement strategy, national and provincial. |
| 7 · Promotion | Building the commercial and medical network — hire, train, manage. |
| 8 · Continuous feedback | Pharmacovigilance and market data: collect, analyse, report. |
How we engage
Three levels, combinable
Initial research
Field interviews and strategic market studies. Persona identification, regulatory pathway, competition, and a plan you can act on.
Part-time management
We run the operation with you: business development, distributor negotiation, organisation build-up, fundraising and licensing.
Part-time expertise
Senior challenge on strategy, regulatory and commercial execution — partners with fifteen years or more, on the days you need them.
Consultants hold at least two years of experience, senior consultants five, partners fifteen. You buy the seniority the question deserves — not a fixed team.