From Italy to the World: How to Plan the Launch of a Food Product on International Markets
13 June 2026
You have the strategy (Guide 1) and the plan (Guide 2). One practical question remains: who will execute it, day by day?
The wrong answer to this question costs more than the question itself.
There are three ways to approach the execution of an export plan—and they are not equivalent. We compare them with real data, including the numbers that are often not calculated until it is too late.
The 3 Options for Managing Export—and Their Real Costs
① Do-it-yourself. The owner or a partner handles export “when there is time.” Direct cost: zero. Real cost: export becomes the first activity postponed when an urgent matter arises—and after a few months without progress, the idea that “export does not work for us” becomes self-reinforcing.
② In-house export manager. A professional with 4-9 years of experience has an average gross annual salary of €40,000-55,000. The real company cost (gross salary + contributions and severance pay, approximately +30%) is €52,000-72,000/year. To this must be added 3-6 months of recruitment and another 3-6 months before the person is truly productive in your company’s specific markets—almost a year before the first concrete result.
③ Outsourced TEM. No fixed structural costs (no contributions, severance pay, benefits). Variable cost, proportional to days and objectives. Operational within a few weeks—because they start with existing market experience and their own network of contacts, not one to be built.
What a TEM Actually Does—and Why They Start with an Advantage
The 5-phase roadmap we described in Guide 2 is exactly the work a TEM executes. The difference compared to a new hire:
Distributor research (months 3-5). An in-house export manager must build a network of contacts from scratch. A TEM often already has active relationships with importers and distributors in target markets—the “first contact” starts from a different position.
Negotiation (months 5-7). Knowing standard clauses, Incoterms, and the typical expectations of a specific market is not learned from books—it is learned through negotiation. A TEM brings this experience from the first contract.
Oversight (months 9-12). A TEM has already gone through the “first order → monitoring → second order” cycle with other companies, and knows how to recognize warning signs before they become problems.
How It Works in Practice
Commitment: typically a few days per month, scaled to the plan and current phase—not a fixed commitment that remains the same throughout the year.
Duration: 6-12 month contracts, renewable based on results. No long-term commitment if the collaboration does not work.
Method: remote work for most activities (research, negotiation, reporting), with periodic market visits when necessary.
Reporting: periodic updates on activities performed, contacts initiated, status of negotiations, and KPIs—the same indicators described in Guide 2.
When an Outsourced TEM Is Not the Right Choice
You already have an in-house resource with the right skills. If there is already someone in the company who knows the target markets and has dedicated time for export, a TEM would add a cost without a proportional benefit.
Export volumes justify a dedicated structure. If export is already a significant part of revenue and requires continuous daily management, a full-time in-house role may be more efficient in the long term.
In these cases, it is better to know this before starting a collaboration—for both parties.
You Have the Strategy and the Plan. Missing Someone to Execute It?
Let’s discuss your project: in an initial conversation we will evaluate together whether and how an outsourced TEM can help you—with no commitment.
Speak with our team →
