Doing business with France
France is one of the major trading partners for British companies. Companies are increasingly sending their staff on business trips in order to establish contacts in France. Our neighbouring country offers a wealth of opportunities for all sorts of businesses in the agricultural, technical, and service sectors. To ensure that your negotiations run smoothly, we can offer you a number of tips for doing business in France.
Tip 1: Formal
Business meetings in France are formal affairs. Hands are firmly shaken and addressing people by their first names is not the norm. Everyone you have shaken hands with upon meeting should also have the same handshake again upon leaving. It is important that you look that person in the eye when you do so.
Tip 2: Gifts
If you are invited for a meal, it is a good idea to bring some kind of corporate gift. However, flowers will probably not be appreciated since these tend to be associated with love and romance. Giving a bottle of wine is a better idea; bear in mind that the French are generally very proud of their own wine.
Instant quotation
Tip 3: Standing up
In France, it is normal to stand up when higher level staff walk into the room. In many companies, it is usual for everyone to stand up together when the CEO walks into a meeting.
Tip 4: Language
In business circles, speaking English generally suffices. However, if you provide your official documents and your own company information and business cards in French too, this will certainly be appreciated. With a professional translation, arrangements can be made more easily or sales can be completed much faster.
Instant quotationTranslations
For professional translations of your business documents, you have come to the right place. Our translators are native speakers of the target language and are therefore able to find the right nuances so that you can be sure that you achieve the right results. In addition, for each text, we can find the right specialist; for legal, agricultural, marketing, and financial texts, and much more, we have access to just the right levels of knowledge and experience for you. Feel free to get in touch with us for further information.
| United Kingdom | Doing business in France |
| Deutschland | Geschäftstätigkeiten |
| Österreich | Geschäftstätigkeiten in Frankreich |
| Norge |