U.S. go-to-market for European B2B tech

Build your
U.S.
business

You built a successful business in Europe. Now it's time to build one here.

Aronia helps European B2B tech companies find the right market, build local credibility, and win their first U.S. customers.

Book a 30-minute introduction Explore the method

Featured & recognized

The reality

In Europe, you're established.
In America, nobody knows you.

Your customers, reputation and relationships got you this far. But they don't automatically cross the Atlantic.

You need to earn trust again, figure out who to target, and create customer conversations before time and money disappear into a market that's far bigger and noisier than it looked from Europe.

I know, because I've been there.

The Aronia method

Five moves. One focused path.

A practical U.S. market entry sequence built to reduce risk, create signal, and turn early traction into repeatable growth.

Validate

Pressure-test the market, the customer need, and the readiness to enter before committing serious resources.

Credibility

Build the narrative, proof, and local signals that make U.S. buyers willing to engage.

Focus

Choose a sharp ICP, compelling use case, and market wedge that concentrate the team's energy.

Engage

Open the right doors, learn from the market, and convert high-quality conversations into customers.

Scale

Turn what works into a repeatable sales process, the right team, and a clear path to growth.

Proof, not theory

Built from the operator's seat.

Aronia's approach comes from creating U.S. traction firsthand and helping the next generation of European founders do the same.

Vincit USA · building the U.S. business from zero↗

From first customer Logitech to eight figures in U.S. revenue.

In 2016, I moved to California to build the U.S. business for Vincit, a publicly traded European software and design company. We had a strong track record in Europe, but no U.S. customers, local reputation, or established go-to-market motion.

I landed our first customer, Logitech, then built the U.S. go-to-market from the ground up. We focused the positioning, built local credibility, won category-leading customers, and used three acquisitions to accelerate growth. Revenue doubled each of the first four years, reaching eight figures within five years.

ZERO → 8-FIGUREU.S. revenue

3×Inc. 5000

3×Acquisitions

Privv · built from zero↗

From an idea to $1M ARR.

I co-founded Privv and built a SaaS project management platform for capital projects. Privv helps building owners and owner's representatives manage budgets, schedules, cash flow, and project workflows in one place, replacing spreadsheets, email, and legacy tools.

We identified the initial market, learned where the ICP wasn't working, pivoted to a stronger segment, and built a repeatable sales motion around it. That sales engine took Privv from zero to $1M ARR, with more than $4 billion in projects managed through the platform.

$1MARR

$4B+Managed on platform

AZInnoFire Awards Winner

Selected clients during my time at Vincit USA

About Ville Houttu

I came to America to build a U.S. business too.

I'm a Finnish engineer and entrepreneur. In 2016, I moved to California with a simple mandate: build the U.S. business for a European software and design company.

We had a strong company and track record in Europe. In America, we had to earn it again. I landed our first customer, built the local team and go-to-market motion, and learned firsthand how differently relationships, credibility, sales, and growth work when you cross the Atlantic.

Over the next several years, I built a team of more than 60 people, completed three acquisitions, established a U.S. leadership team, and helped turn the operation into a successful American business.

Along the way, the companies I led made the Inc. 5000 three years in a row and were recognized by Fast Company and Inc. for the workplaces we built. I was named Irvine Entrepreneur of the Year and later became an EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist. I've also shared what I learned through TEDx, Forbes, TechCrunch, Inc., and Adam Grant's WorkLife podcast.

That's the experience I bring to Aronia. I've sat on the European side of the table and built the American business on the other side.

3×Inc. 5000

3×Acquisitions

2×Entrepreneur of the Year Recognition

1×TEDx Speaker

View recognition & media ↓

Ways to work together

Senior help, shaped to the moment.

Start with the market-entry decision in front of you. Expand only when the evidence supports it.

Figure out where to play, who to target, and how to win.

For European B2B tech companies that need a clear U.S. entry strategy before committing significant time and capital.

What we work on

Target market and ICP
U.S. buyer and decision-makers
Initial use case and commercial offer
U.S. positioning and messaging
Customer proof and sales narrative
Priority target accounts
Partners, organizations and events
90-day U.S. go-to-market plan

You leave with: A focused, launch-ready U.S. GTM plan with clear priorities, target accounts, owners and next actions.

Turn the strategy into real U.S. customer conversations.

For companies that know where they want to compete and now need to create traction.

What we work on

Target-account outreach
LinkedIn and direct outreach
Customer and partner introductions
Meeting preparation and follow-up
Local relationship development
Event activation
Opportunity and pipeline management
Messaging refinement based on market feedback

The objective: Build a repeatable sales motion that creates qualified conversations and moves the strongest opportunities toward an initial U.S. customer or pilot.

An experienced U.S. operator alongside you as you build.

Ongoing founder-level support for European CEOs and leadership teams building their U.S. business.

Where I help

U.S. GTM and growth decisions
Pipeline and opportunity reviews
Positioning and commercial strategy
Customer and partner relationships
Events and market presence
Sales-team coaching
Hiring and local-market decisions
Priorities, accountability and next actions

The model: Direct access to someone who has built a European technology company's U.S. operation from zero to eight-figure revenue, without hiring a full-time U.S. executive.

Recognition & media

A few milestones along the way.

Entrepreneurship & leadership

2023EY Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist
2019OCtane Outstanding Small Tech CEO Finalist
2019Vistage Impact Award
2018Entrepreneur of the Year, Greater Irvine Chamber of Commerce

Companies built

Privv

2025InnoFire Award, Software
2025AZ Business Journal, Startups to Watch
2024Arizona Innovation Challenge, $100K Winner

Vincit USA

2023Inc. 5000, Fastest Growing Companies in America
2022Inc. 5000, Fastest Growing Companies in America
2021Inc. 5000, Fastest Growing Companies in America
2020Fast Company, Best Workplaces for Innovators
2019Inc. Magazine, Best Workplaces

Media & speaking

Start with one conversation

Is the U.S. your next market?

Tell me a little about your company and where you are in the U.S. market journey. I'll follow up to arrange a 30-minute introduction.