Why Structure Beats Sales When Europeans Enter the US Market | Thomas Rechtien | EP 11

In this episode of Transatlantic Titans, Thomas Rechtien and Manny Schoenhuber get into what actually separates the European companies that scale in America from the ones that quietly go home after three years. Thomas argues that most owners fix the wrong thing first. They arrive, they hire salespeople, they push for revenue, and they never build the structure underneath it.____________________00:00 Meet Thomas Rechtien01:00 From banking apprenticeship to twenty years in steel02:00 Why the US: the push and the pull04:00 Chicago to Houston and the scale of America05:00 Turning around a struggling US operation06:00 Running the show as president and CEO09:00 Why a local presence changes everything for US customers11:00 The Salzgitter brand as a door opener12:00 Selling on quality when you cannot win on price13:00 Lead times, buffer stock, and closing the service gap15:00 How local should you be? The spectrum explained18:00 Leaving Salzgitter and building his own practice19:00 His grandfather's carpentry shop: an expensive job, not a system20:00 The operating system: decision rights and the functional seat chart23:00 Who he works with: Mittelstand companies from five to fifty million24:00 Buying a US company instead of building from scratch27:00 Coaching judgment instead of checklists28:00 The mistakes: service culture and product-market mismatch31:00 Consolidation, private equity, and the compressed speed of business34:00 Legal pitfalls: employee handbooks, contracts, company setup36:00 The take it or leave it myth with big OEMs39:00 Success story: a Chicago steel service center doubles revenue41:00 What still holds European companies back42:00 The Core Four48:00 Rapid Fire: This or That49:00 Culture shock, distance, and doing business in person52:00 Dale Carnegie and favorite US cities53:00 How to connect with Thomas55:00 Final takeaway____________________𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗦🌐 Website: https://www.rechtienconsult.com/🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-rechtien/𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗠 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗬🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MannySchoenhuber🌐 Website: https://mannyschoenhuber.com/🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mannyschoenhuber/📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mannyschoenhuber/📧 Email: [email protected]📖 Get the #1 Best-Selling Book: https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Market-Entry-Europeans-America/dp/1544545533👍 𝗟𝗜𝗞𝗘 - if you enjoy this content🔔 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - for more strategies on how Europeans make it BIG in America⚠️ Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional legal or financial advice. Please consult with a qualified professional regarding your specific business situation.