Is doing business in Florida easy?

Many have wondered: “How hard is it to do business in Florida?” before deciding to enter one of the most prominent markets of the US. Through this article, we will help you learn more about the advantages as well as obstacles of doing business in Florida as a foreign corporation.

Overview of Florida

Florida is the third most populous state in the United States, located in the Southeast of the United States. The state is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Gulf of Mexico to the west, the states of Georgia and Alabama. The capital of Florida is Tallahassee, the largest cities are Jacksonville and Miami which are also the largest metropolitan areas. This place is known as the most attractive entertainment paradise in the United States which attracts many investors from all over the world.

Miami, Florida - one of the most attractive entertainment paradise in the US

Florida has the 4th largest economy and export volume in the United States. The industries with the largest total GDP such as tourism, construction, agriculture, science and health are what constitute doing business in Florida. Moreover, this state also has a series of large-scale companies such as Publix, Jabil, Olive Garden or Walt Disney amusement park. As an ideal state in terms of living and working environment, Florida becomes a place that attracts millions of residents every year, especially investors who come here to do business in Florida as a foreign LLC.

Advantages of doing business in Florida

Florida is ranked 2nd by Chief Executive Magazine in the best states for businesses in 2021. Therefore, it is considered an ideal destination for doing business in Florida as a foreign corporation. Let's take a look at the advantages that you will get when setting up a company here.

• The market capitalization of the US and Florida specifically is much larger than elsewhere. This will be a place for many investors with financial potential, you will easily find many opportunities as well as potential partners.
• Businesses based in Florida are expected to have a great appeal to investors around the world rather than just in your home market. Moreover, your business image will become more prestigious and your reputation will be more valuable to investors and other partners.

  

  Businesses based in Florida have a great appeal to partners around the world

• Florida and the US in general is one of the most famous places in the world for protecting the intellectual property rights of each individual. With effective law enforcement authorities, your business's brand will always be protected in the most comprehensive way, preventing unfair competition from other competitors.
• America is a well-developed region and has economic linkages through free trade agreements. For example, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA, including the US, Canada and Mexico with nearly 500 million people, GDP reaching 21 trillion USD); MERCOSUR (including: Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay with 265 million people, GDP reaching 2.4 trillion USD). If making good use of these economic linkage mechanisms and trade incentives, investors can find new business opportunities as well as diversify products and markets.

Challenges when doing business in Florida as a foreign corporation

The US is a potential market with many opportunities but also many struggles for foreign businesses. To compete in a large market like Florida is really not a simple matter. There are countless entrepreneurs who failed and could not achieve their "American dream". Let's take a look at the difficulties that foreign businesses may face when starting to penetrate this challenging market.

• Financial capacity is still limited, which is most evident in the production scale of enterprises which are usually small and the ability to link between enterprises in production and export is weak, so it will be difficult to meet large orders.
• Competition in the Florida market is extremely tough and fierce. Since many years ago, many businesses from other countries have been present in this market and developed strongly. Starting a company and growing quickly here can be quite challenging for businesses especially for those doing business in Florida as a foreign corporation.
• Freight rates and shipping times to the US are often very high and take a long time compared to other countries.

What should you prepare before doing business in Florida?

To be able to successfully penetrate the Florida market as well as the US and gain a strong position here, businesses who are doing business in Florida as a foreign corporation must focus on market research and detailed planning, and especially pay attention to the following issues:

• You need to have a specific and realistic business plan as well as a development orientation. This will lay the groundwork and keep you and your business on the right track. At the same time, it also helps you easily recognize when your company is off-track or development progress is not as planned.

  

  A practical long-term business plan is the most important step in doing business in Florida

• Find out what the Florida market needs for the product your business offers. For example, Florida's key industry is tourism and agriculture, does your product belong to or complement those industries? You must carefully and thoroughly review and evaluate whether your product meets the requirements of this market or not. The top criteria that need to be considered include price, product specifications, color, label, product packaging or chemical content used in production before doing business in Florida.
• You need to learn and identify an effective distribution channel or partner that you are aiming for so that you can choose the most appropriate and effective promotion method. If the size of your company is small or medium, competition based on price will be a big disadvantage if you are doing business in Florida as a foreign LLC because it depends on many other factors such as raw material price, shipping price, tax rate... At the same time, researching local support programs for small and medium enterprises is also a good option.

The above article has given what constitutes doing business in Florida. If you want to enhance your position in the market as well as expand your business scale, develop internationally, then setting up a corporation in Florida is an option not to be missed. Once you have established a business base and gained a certain position in this market, your business will have more opportunities to grow and easily achieve success in the international market.