The Relevance and Perception of African Business Potentials: German Perspectives and Strategies on Internationalization to Africa

Africa has been labelled the next big market for many years. From a German perspective, these expectations are not yet met by the activities of German firms in many industries. The German engagement in Africa is, at best, limited so far. Nevertheless, the growing African automotive aftermarket is becoming increasingly important for German suppliers, due to the increasing demand for spare parts and the need to find markets where internal combustion engines are still in high demand for the next decade. Against this background, this chapter sheds light on the hurdles and strategies of firms doing business in Africa. From academic and practical perspectives, the approaches of German firms are analysed and evaluated. The findings and cases consistently highlight the relevance of local sales partners and their specific knowledge in successfully addressing the African automotive aftermarket.