Earlier this week, we hosted Cracking the German Market at Hemby with Richard Nordström (Founder & CEO).
Expanding to Germany sounds like the obvious move, Europe’s largest market. In reality, it’s anything but straightforward.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the session:
→ Go big, or don’t go at all
Hemby deliberately chose Germany over smaller markets. Why? Because Germany is roughly 10× larger than a typical Nordic market, forcing the concept to prove itself at a completely different scale.
→ Germany is attractive, but be ready to “eat glass”
Germany is still highly paper-based and bureaucratic. Setting up operations remotely meant dealing with banks, embassies, IDs, all before even stepping into the country.
→ Trust is everything
German customers don’t automatically trust you, especially as a foreign company. Your digital footprint matters more than you think: reviews, data, and credibility signals.
→ Localization is not optional
From employment law to communication style, what works in Finland doesn’t translate. Underestimating this can cost significant time.
→ Start lean, validate, then commit
Hemby launched remotely (with native speakers), validated demand by serving real customers with strong feedback, and only then established operations on the ground, including getting approved into the public care reimbursement system in 9 months.
→ Competition ≠ saturation
The market is highly fragmented, with hundreds of players. Opportunity exists if you position correctly.
→ Early hires can make or break the market
Local talent isn’t just about execution, iit brings insight, credibility, and speed.
→ Be opportunistic
One of Hemby’s biggest growth boosts came from acquiring a closing competitor, bringing both customers and workforce almost overnight.
→ Do your own homework
Germany has less accessible public data than Nordic markets. You can’t rely on the same playbooks, first-principles thinking is essential.
The honest reality:
Your growth playbook only gets truly tested when you step outside your home market, without your network, brand, or shortcuts.
A big thank you to everyone who joined, the quality of questions and discussion made this session especially strong.
More sessions like this coming soon 👀