Posted on: 04/06/2025

Masterclass on Scaling Up and Exporting to Europe

MTPConnect hosted an exclusive workshop led by international business strategist Christelle Damiens – Founder of Exportia – at CSL’s Jumar BioIncubator in Melbourne last week, offering Industry Growth Program clients the opportunity to learn more about the ins and outs of exporting medical products to Europe.

As an Industry Partner Organisation to the Australian Government’s Industry Growth Program, MTPConnect organises capability building events and supports medical science start-ups and SMEs participating in the program to grow and bring their innovative technologies to market.

This one-day masterclass focused on demystifying the European market for innovative small and medium sized-businesses, using a proven four-step framework to grow their export sales and scale globally.

Delegates explored key stages of international expansion: defining a scalable export strategy, conducting robust market validation, building quality leads, followed by a session on how to scale into European healthcare systems.

Some of Christelle’s key takeaways included:

Treat distributors as strategic assets. She encouraged attendees to “leverage distributors to derisk their business and expand their market reach – tap into their often-overlooked value in providing real-time market insights, and ability to generate leads.”
Be strategic with Sales Reps as well – while setting-up European distribution, “finding a champion is a great start” – someone who is engaged and interested in your business and focus on them to generate initial revenue.
Use the power of product demos, trade shows, and conferences as a low-cost, high-impact strategy for lead generation in Europe. These events are a great way to gather market information and industry connections.

Everyone left the masterclass with some new ideas, practical tools and a clear action plan on how to approach entry to the European market, as well as a copy of Christelle’s book “The 4 Steps to Generate Your First Million Euros in Sales”.

Through strategic events like this, MTPConnect continues to support sovereign innovation by helping Australian startups to successfully compete in global markets.