The phrase "an early foothold" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe a preliminary position or advantage gained in a particular situation or field.
Example: "The startup managed to secure an early foothold in the competitive market, allowing it to grow rapidly."
Alternatives: "a preliminary position" or "an initial advantage".
It was an essentially untapped market, and those manufacturers who established an early foothold dominated it.
The opening exchanges proved Smith wasn't daunted yet Canelo's jab ensured the Mexican earned an early foothold.
During the 1970's, he pioneered business talks with China establishing an early foothold for the company in that expanding market.
Rooney was United's central threat, but once the home team got themselves an early foothold, they were always chasing the champions.
Applied Materials is trying to solve this problem and get an early foothold in a potentially huge market by standardizing equipment that makes flexible displays.
From the 1995 publication of The Internet Report onwards, she was convinced (correctly) that digitization would transform the economy, and that the companies which established an early foothold would have a great competitive advantage.
But as Microsoft's power in that marketplace began to grow, the company had less interest in letting companies like Bristol develop products that would ease the integration between Windows and Unix, which had gained an earlier foothold.
This high-profile partnership continues to show just what a strong early foothold NextVR is getting in the live event VR-streaming space.
And with its chief rival achieving an early, solid foothold in the digital distribution business, the company is almost certainly looking to respond.
With the deal, the company will join the ranks of American peers like Google and eBay, which were unable to capitalize on early footholds in China.
They had lobbied against expanding the pool of growers, arguing that their business plans and pitches to investors were based on having an early and exclusive foothold in the industry.
