The objective of this paper is to test if prior knowledge and market knowledge influence the firm’s expectation that it will find growth opportunities in foreign markets. The study advances four hypotheses, which are tested on a sample of460 CEO’s or managers in firms in Denmark, New Zealand and Sweden. A LISREL analysis gives support to three of the hypotheses: General international business experience and knowledge about competitors in the foreign tend to have a positive effect on the firm’s expectation to find growth opportunities. Firms with a higher degree of international experience tend to have more relevant international business experience. Knowledge about the customer, however, had the opposite sign to the proposed one. Firms with more knowledge about customers tend to see less growth opportunities. The main conclusion drawn from the study is that firms expect to find growth opportunities based on its concrete business experience. Business operations can help the firm to recognize opportunities but also limit how far it can see. The operations thereby define the firm’s opportunity horizon. Customer knowledge, however, seems to be a result of already exploited opportunities.