Doing Business With the US: Look before you leap

DESPITE the close social and economic ties between the US and UK, it would be wrong to underestimate the challenges of entering the US market place.

Last week President Obama described Britain as “our indispensable partner”, and while the opporunities in what remains the world’s biggest economy are potentially huge – and are already worth nearly £160bn a year – anything other than a planned and measured approach would be folly.

Click here to download our free Doing Business with the US supplement in association with international law firm Squire Patton Boggs.

There can also be big cultural and regulatory differences between each of the states, and even the UK government admits the US tax system is “complex and confusing”.

Litigation is common too, so it is essential to understand the environment and take appropriate advice. Some sectors are more regulated than others such as oil and gas, the environment, health and safety and financial services.

Giles Chesher, a partner at Squire Patton Boggs in Manchester said: “I think that it’s easy to underestimate the differences between the two countries particularly with the languages being the same. And legislative differences are chief among these.”

Richard Northcote, chairman of British American Business Council North West adds:: “The US is not only a challenging market, it’s also a huge market. There are 50 different states there that are the equivalent to 50 different countries.

“While the culture is similar to our own, it’s also very different. Take the common language we share – which anyone who has traded in the US knows has lots of different meanings.”

Doing Business in the US is free to download by clicking here .