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On June 10, 2025, the Internationalization Center Styria (ICS), together with the Foreign Trade Center New Delhi, invited guests to the “India Forum – Market Entry in Practice” at the ICS in Graz. Numerous Styrian entrepreneurs took the opportunity to gain practical information about opportunities, challenges, and success strategies for entering the Indian market.
Following the welcome address by ICS Managing Director Karl Hartleb and a presentation of the “go international” internationalization offensive by Marion Kikinger, Hans-Jörg Hörtnagl, Commercial Counselor in New Delhi, provided a well-founded overview of India’s market potential. With concrete tips and practical examples, he demonstrated how Austrian companies can successfully leverage this potential.
The experience reports from corporate practice were particularly insightful. Bijan Sabetizade from TCM International described his company’s evaluation and preparation steps for a successful entry into India. Nina and Reinhard Ortner from Ortner Maschinen provided valuable insights into daily negotiations with Indian business partners, where things can occasionally get quite tough.
India Project Manager Mag. Christina Ulrich also led the program and moderated the event with charm and professionalism.
The second part of the event focused on strategic and legal implementation. Klaus Maier from M+V and Altios, a leading consultancy for India market strategies, presented concrete recommendations for action regarding sales development, localization, and sustainable local growth. Subsequently, Martin Wörlein from Rödl & Partner highlighted key legal and tax aspects, ranging from company formation and tax pitfalls to Indian labor law.
The event concluded with an informal networking session at the ICS, where individual questions could be discussed directly with the experts.
The ICS would like to thank all contributors and participants for the successful exchange. The event has once again shown that the Indian market offers great potential—provided that market entry is well-prepared, culturally sensitive, and strategically planned. Furthermore, taking the time for partner selection and due diligence is essential.
