[Case Study] 7 Diverse Startups, Simultaneously Finding Global Buyers — Using Rinda for Public Institutions

"Can you help open up global markets for our portfolio companies?"

That was the request from a manager at a Korean public institution, 'D', when they first contacted Rinda.

Institution D invests in startups across diverse industries and planned a program to simultaneously find global buyers for 7 of its portfolio startups. The challenge? All 7 companies were completely different. From cooling tower materials to hydrogen energy, low-methane feed additives, fanless power supplies, and plasma smart farms. They couldn't share buyer lists, and they certainly couldn't use a unified strategy.

In effect, we were managing 7 independent projects simultaneously.

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The hardest part: Companies with "no clear value proposition"

We created a value proposition before looking for buyers

Before digging for buyers, the Rinda team had a prerequisite: each company needed to be able to explain "why they should deal with us" in the buyer’s language.

Some companies were in the early stages with almost no portfolios or reference data. No sales history, no export experience, and no overseas marketing materials. We couldn't just ask them to "send us a brochure."

So, we approached it backwards. We first identified what problem their product solved, found where buyers with that problem existed in the global market, and then crafted a message in the buyer's language. It wasn't about selling a product; it was about proposing a solution.

7 companies, 7 independent strategies

For each company, Rinda’s AI buyer discovery tool generated a tailored list of approximately 300 companies. Rinda analyzes a company’s ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) and automatically generates and parallel-crawls multi-search scenarios suited to their industry, country, and size.

Email strategies were also designed individually. We didn't use the same template for all 7; we crafted unique messages aligned with the market context of each company. Below, we share strategies from three companies that saw particularly notable results.

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ICP analysis and email strategy by company

Hydrogen Energy Firm: Using Energy Transition Policies as a Contact Point

When designing the ICP for this firm, our first question was, "Who is actually spending the budget on hydrogen infrastructure right now?" Finding buyers with the context and authority to make purchasing decisions was more important than the technical superiority itself.

ICP criteria (Target Buyer Profile)

• Countries: Europe (Germany, Netherlands, Denmark), Australia, and Japan — countries with formalized hydrogen economy roadmaps.
• Industries: Industrial gas distributors, renewable energy EPC firms, hydrogen charging station operators, and energy infrastructure investors.
• Size: 50+ employees, with dedicated hydrogen or new business departments.

Once the ICP was confirmed, we moved to messaging. Lacking references, we avoided listing product specs. Instead, we addressed the problems buyers currently face—efficiency losses in storage/transport and compatibility issues—and concisely offered a technical path to a solution.

Email subject line examples

• "Reducing hydrogen loss during transport — a solution worth 15 minutes of your time"
• "Your H2 infrastructure expansion: one compatibility issue we can help solve"
• "We're working with a Korean hydrogen tech team — relevant to your 2024 roadmap?"

To boost early open rates, subjects were framed as questions or problem statements, referencing the buyer's industry to show the email wasn't just a generic blast. We used a 3-step multi-step sequence, adding brief technical verification data in the 2nd follow-up to build trust.

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Plasma Smart Farm Firm: Targeting Efficiency Demands in Emerging Markets

This firm produced some of the most impressive results. They successfully connected with a buyer in Tanzania. The fact that it didn't result in a closed deal was due to the buyer's budget constraints, not a failure in technology or messaging.

We intentionally moved developed markets to the bottom of our priority list. We determined that plasma-based smart farming technology would hold more appeal in markets struggling with unstable power grids and high reliance on chemical pesticides.

ICP criteria (Target Buyer Profile)

• Countries: Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines), Africa (Tanzania, Kenya, Ghana), Middle East (UAE, Saudi — active areas for food security investment).
• Industries: Agricultural production corporations, agri-input distributors, government-linked agricultural project managers, and greenhouse operators.
• Size: 5+ hectares in operation or with a history of adopting agricultural tech.

Our messaging led with "reducing pesticide use and ensuring growth stability" rather than "increasing yield." For emerging market buyers, cost reduction and minimizing crop loss are far more immediate purchase motivators. We minimized tech-talk and focused on result-oriented language.

Email subject line examples

• "Cut pesticide costs by changing how you sterilize — plasma farming tech from Korea"
• "Greenhouse yield consistency in humid climates — solved with plasma-based system"
• "Are you exploring new agri-tech for your 2024 expansion? We have something relevant"

The connection with the Tanzanian buyer proved this strategy right. That an early-stage firm with no international history could capture interest from an African buyer clearly demonstrates the power of sharp value proposition design.

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Low-Methane Feed Additives: Turning Carbon Regulations into Purchasing Drivers

This was the most difficult category to pin down. While the product was clear, the "reason to buy" hadn't fully formed in the market. Few countries had mandates, and not many livestock firms were voluntarily investing in carbon reduction.

We chose to target "early adopters" in regions with strict regulations. We focused on large livestock firms in places where carbon regulations were active or imminent, and global food companies facing pressure to manage supply chain carbon emissions.

ICP criteria (Target Buyer Profile)

• Countries: EU (Ireland, Netherlands, Denmark — pioneers in livestock carbon regulation), New Zealand, Australia, and the US (states like California with early regulations).
• Industries: Large-scale livestock production firms, feed manufacturing/distribution, and procurement departments of global food companies with public ESG goals.
• Size: 10,000+ heads of livestock or public/private companies issuing ESG reports.

Our messaging key was "lowering compliance costs," not "environmental contribution." We led with the risks caused by carbon taxes or failure to comply, connecting the product’s methane-reducing capabilities to lower compliance costs.

Email subject line examples

• "EU methane regulation 2024: how are you adjusting your feed strategy?"
• "Reduce enteric methane without changing your herd size — feed additive from Korea"
• "Your ESG targets and livestock emissions — a practical solution worth reviewing"

Despite being in an early stage, this company received inquiries for samples from EU buyers by precisely highlighting the regulatory context. Designing the message so that buyers could answer "why do we need this now?" for themselves was key.

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Results

Indicator	Result
Participating startups	7 companies
Buyer list per company	~300 companies
Average responses	2~3 companies per firm
Companies with successful engagement	4 out of 7
Program scale	18.55 million KRW (incl. VAT)

The smart farm firm, in particular, successfully connected with a buyer in Tanzania. While it didn't lead to a transaction due to budget issues, confirming global interest in new technology was a significant achievement in itself.

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What Rinda actually did in this program

It wasn't just a blind email campaign.

We created value propositions for companies that lacked them, discovered buyers with AI, wrote customized emails for each firm, and delivered responses to the companies in real-time.

The manager at Institution D was most surprised by the speed.

"Existing export support programs take months just for preparation. With Rinda, we had buyer lists in just a few days."

Rinda’s AI generates initial buyer lists in 10 minutes, automatically creates tailored emails, and follows up with multi-step sequences. One manager can comfortably handle 7 companies at once.

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What this case tells us

When public institutions or accelerators support the global expansion of portfolio companies, customized strategies are far more effective than one-size-fits-all programs. For new technology fields like hydrogen, smart farming, or eco-friendly materials, there is clear global demand, but it is difficult to identify the specific buyers who hold it.

What is needed is not just a list. It is the capability to design messages in the buyer’s language and an AI-based system to execute it quickly.

That is what we confirmed through this program. If a company has a proper value proposition and a target, knocking on the door of global buyers can start much faster than one might expect.

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Client names, institution names, and personnel names have been anonymized at the request of the client.