With nearly two decades of experience across Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East, this international strategist has built a career helping businesses navigate uncertainty, manage complex risks, and expand confidently into new markets. In this exclusive interview with The World’s Times, he discusses the power of economic intelligence, the importance of verified information in global trade, the role of cultural insight in leadership, and why preparation not optimism is the true foundation of international success.
Turning Risk into Strategic Opportunity
We started the interview by asking, “You’ve built your career around high-risk international environments. What drives your approach to turning uncertainty into opportunity?”
Laurent Serafini replied, “Uncertainty is where most companies hesitate, but that’s exactly where value is created. My role is to make the invisible visible. After 18 years across LATAM, Africa, and MENA, I’ve learned that risks are rarely random they’re predictable if you have the right intelligence. I don’t eliminate risk entirely; I structure it, control it, and transform it into a competitive advantage. That’s how companies move from fear-based decisions to strategic expansion with confidence.”
Intelligence Rooted in Reality
The Worlds Times: Velours International focuses on economic intelligence and risk management. What makes your methodology different from traditional consulting firms?
Laurent Serafini replied, “Most firms sell you reports. I sell certainties. The difference? We go into the field. We verify, investigate, and confront information against reality not an algorithm or a distant database. I’ve seen multinationals lose eight-figure contracts because they trusted an analysis written from a desk in Paris or London. Our boutique model is the exact opposite: we are inside the client’s reality, not above it. And we anticipate threats before the client ever sees them coming.”
Building Trust through Verified Commodity Trade
The Worlds Times: With Gaelad International, you’ve entered the commodities space. What problem are you solving in this industry?
Laurent Serafini replied, “The commodities market suffers from opacity, fraud, and excessive intermediaries. Buyers often don’t know who they’re really dealing with. With Gaelad, we flipped the model: investigation comes before negotiation. We connect verified buyers directly with audited producers, ensuring full traceability and security. No unnecessary intermediaries, no fake certificates just trusted transactions. In a market where one mistake can cost millions, security becomes the real added value.”
Leading with Cultural Intelligence
The Worlds Times: You’ve worked across multiple continents and cultures. How has this shaped your leadership and decision-making?
Laurent Serafini replied, “It taught me something business schools don’t: the map is not the territory. You can have the best strategic plan in the world — but if you don’t understand why a minister in West Africa isn’t calling back, or why a partner in Latin America smiles while saying no, you’re already losing. My leadership starts with radical listening. Not to be accommodating, but to act with surgical precision where others are still guessing.”
Determining Global Success
Lastly, we asked, “As a French Foreign Trade Advisor, you also support companies in their international expansion. What is the biggest mistake businesses make when entering new markets?”
“They confuse enthusiasm with preparation. They see an opportunity, they run. And six months later, they call me to clean up the damage. The problem is never the market; it’s the arrogance of believing you can enter it without understanding its codes, its hidden risks, its real players. I have one principle: every euro invested in intelligence upfront saves a hundred in crisis management. That’s not caution. That’s strategic calculation.” Laurent Serafini concluded
Connect with Laurent Serafini on LinkedIn
For more information visit: www.groupevelours.com/ https://www.gaelad.com/
Email:
Risk management and strategic intelligence / mailto:l.serafini@groupevelours.com
Secure trade commodities / mailto:l.serafini@gaelad.com
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