International business simulator
Run an established international company at its real size — 10 million customers on day one — year by year for eight years, before you bet the real one.
Continents, a global leader to chase, and where to expand next. This one opens as Meridian Brands: A consumer goods company selling across continents against a global leader and regional champions. Rename it, reprice it, or describe your own international company and let Nova rewrite it to fit.
What a steady company ends up with
Played steadily for all eight years — quality first, then growth, a fair share of the bank spent each year — a steady company here ends its last year on $3.1bn of revenue and $241m of profit, with 18.1 million customers and 13% of the market (#4 of 6).
It opens as it stands today: 10 million customers, 3,300 staff and $150m in the bank.
People who play it well do better, and a bad plan runs out of money.
Revenue in the last year: $3.1bn
Profit in the last year: $241m
Customers at the end: 18.1 million
Share of the market: From nothing to 13%
Where it finishes: #4 of 6
Years and decisions: 8 years, yearly
What you'll decide each year
Each year you set prices, brand and sales spend region by region, decide capacity and headcount, choose where to expand next, and how much to borrow or pay back.
Each decision shows on a forecast before you file it, and every period resolves against the rivals and the economy.
Who your customers are
At this size the market barely grows, so every point of share is taken from somebody, region by region — and the leader fights back.
120 million customers in all, across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Middle East & Africa.
Value shoppers: Millions of them, loyal to the price and nothing else. About 60 million of them, worth $105 a year each.
Mainstream households: They buy the brand they trust and switch when it lets them down. About 38.4 million of them, worth $165 a year each.
Premium buyers: They pay for the best and expect it to feel that way. About 14.4 million of them, worth $360 a year each.
Business accounts: Contracts, volume discounts and a procurement team. About 7.2 million of them, worth $600 a year each.
Who you're up against
You start as one of the big names, with four rivals around you and every one of them after your customers. They play to win: they cut prices, spend on marketing and answer what you do.
The global leader: The biggest, and slow to change — it has stopped listening to its smaller customers. Holds about 30% of the market.
The discount giant: Wins on price and little else; its customers leave the moment somebody is better. Holds about 22% of the market.
The regional champion: Hasn't changed in years and is living off the customers it already has. Holds about 14% of the market.
The fast-growing challenger: Clever and quick, but stretched thin and hard to get hold of. Holds about 8% of the market.
How it works
Free until you start: building and previewing cost nothing, and starting is $10, once.
Build it — free: Press build and you get your own copy of this market: four kinds of customer, four rivals and five regions.
Make it yours: Change any number, describe your international company in a sentence or two and let Nova fill it in, or upload a profit and loss or a month-by-month sales history to fit it to your real figures.
Preview — free: See what a steady company ends up with, and every warning worth reading, before you pay anything.
Start — $10: Pay once to start, your seat included. Then run it year by year for eight years.
Also for
global · international · multinational · worldwide · export · continents
How much does the international business simulator cost?
Building and previewing are free: make your own copy of this international company market, change anything in it and see what a steady company ends up with without paying. Starting the simulation is $10, once, and your own seat is included.
Can I make it match my own international company?
Yes. Every number can be changed — the customers and what they pay, the rivals, the regions, the costs and the starting cash. Or describe your international company in a sentence or two and Nova, SparkTower's AI, fills every section in for one Nova action. If you already trade, upload a profit and loss or a month-by-month sales history and the simulation is fitted to your real numbers.
Are the numbers realistic for an international company?
The template is checked against what real ones do: played steadily, a believable one finishes year eight turning over between $1bn and $3.5bn, with between 5 million and 25 million customers. This one's preview comes to about $3.1bn and 18.1 million. Your own prices, costs and figures change that, which is the point of trying it here first.
Can I use it to test an international company business plan?
That is what it is for. Put your plan's prices, costs and starting cash in, play it forward year by year, and see whether the money lasts, how many customers you would need and what a rival's price cut does to you — before you put real money in.
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