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TRANSCRIPT
Case Study /
Using Local Alternative Payment Methods to Drive International Expansion
Localized payment methods have been
a crucial part of SmartBuyGlasses’
ability to penetrate new markets.
Doron Kalinko, CEO Motion Global
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Under its ‘SmartBuyGlasses’ brand, Motion Global is the leading global e-tailer of designer eyewear, with operations across
Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas. SmartBuyGlasses’ domain properties are market leaders in over 35 countries and
17 languages worldwide. But success didn’t come easily. Forming in 2006 in the bedroom of one of the founders, the
company intuitively understood that in order to successfully grow and expand into new markets and geographies, it would
need to offer a localized customer journey that conforms to local habits and customs. By 2010, the company had grown to
the point that it needed outside support in order to continue adding more international markets. So Motion Global turned
to Ingenico ePayments, with impressive results…
INTRODUCTION
CHALLENGE
The global market for eyewear, which includes eyeglasses,
contact lenses and sunglasses, is growing rapidly around
the world, and is estimated by to be worth around $140
billion by the year 2020*. This growth is fueled in part by
the changing consumer preferences of an emerging middle-
class looking for luxury branded items such as designer
sunglasses. At the same time, the eyewear industry has
been going through a big transition over the last few years,
with the advent of specialist e-tailers and marketplaces
encroaching on the traditional brick and mortar retailers.
Advanced 3-D modeling technology and free shipping and
returns have removed the need of trying on glasses in the
store, allowing online ecommerce retailers marketplaces
such as SmartBuyGlasses to have the advantage of being
able to offer a much larger selection than any physical
store can at more competitive pricing.
This new dynamic has seen Motion Global develop the
SmartBuyGlasses brand from a small start-up, which
operated from the bedroom of one of the founders in
Shanghai, to a global eyewear powerhouse selling into
35 markets across the world. The company maintains a
proprietary global technology and operations platform that
combines a global culture of best practice with in-house
management of key operations including information
technology, design, emarketing, supply chain management,
merchandising, and customer service. However, unlike
many other e-commerce companies, Motion Global has
achieved all of this without any outside investment.
SmartBuyGlasses competes in its space with some very
large, global retailers and department stores, and the
company understood early on that scale would be key
to its expansion strategy. That meant growing beyond its
core market of Australia and entering new markets. But
how to quantify which new markets provide the biggest
opportunity? And how does consumer behavior in those
markets differ from the Australian market the company had
been so successful in? What are the local tastes, shopping
habits, language requirements and payment preferences
that the company would need to cater to in order to
provide the kind of rich and seamless customer experience
it is known for at home?
After expanding into several new markets between 2006
and 2010, the company determined that it needed a global
payments partner to help it further grow and manage the
increasing complexity of running operations and collecting
payments in multiple markets. Ingenico ePayments
provided not only the international portfolio of cards and
alternative payment products that the company considered
key to its success in new markets, but was also able to help
SmartBuyGlasses with the kind of data-driven insights into
consumer payment behavior and preferences that would
enable the company to provide a truly localized shopping
experience wherever the company wanted to go next.
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SOLUTION
Since the company started working with Ingenico
ePayments in 2010, SmartBuyGlasses has experienced
exponential growth, launching in an additional 15 new
countries. The company follows a sophisticated process
to identify and quantify potential new markets. First, the
company does an overall search analysis and runs a variety
of tests using tools such as Google Adwords. If results
meet the company’s requirements, they work with Ingenico
ePayments to understand the local payment landscape.
This includes analyzing local alternative payment methods,
pricing in local currencies, and consumer payment
preferences. The company further investigates import
regulations, competitor landscape, political and economic
stability, and other factors, before making the final decision
on whether or not to open a website in that market.
Once a new market has been identified, the company
starts by translating its website into the local language.
The company then makes customizations for the market
including adding all of the locally relevant payment
products to ensure consumers feel comfortable on its
website and can pay using their own preferred payment
methods.
Next, the company sets up logistics relationships and
begins test shipments and begins updating all of its internal
processes to ensure the new country is setup in each area
of its operations. With Ingenico ePayments’ full-service
approach, this process is streamlined as Ingenico collects
all payments and remits into SmartBuyGlasses’ preferred
currency. Due to Ingenico ePayments’ ability to provide
a single report covering all markets, reconciliation is
dramatically simplified. With all of those steps in place, the
company is ready to launch its local website and marketing
efforts, and to start selling.
Over the five years of working together, Ingenico
ePayments has processed in excess of $150 million in
payments for SmartBuyGlasses, as the company expanded
into 35 markets and operates websites in 17 different
languages. Offering a carefully curated selection of locally
relevant alternative payment products in addition to all
major credit cards has allowed the company to successfully
maneuver the tricky landscape of new market introductions
and continue to grow aggressively around the world.
Doron Kalinko, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of
SmartBuyGlasses explains: “Localized payment methods
have been a crucial part of SmartBuyGlasses’s ability to
penetrate new markets. I strongly believe that one of the
primary contributing factors to our success is our ability
to provide our customers with their preferred payment
methods.”
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Curious about how we can go further together?
Visit www.ingenico.com/epayments
For more information, please visit:
www.smartbuyglasses.com
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INTERNATIONAL ExPANSION WITH INGENICO EPAyMENTS
TAKE AWAyS
5 Key Take Aways from Doron Kalinko, Chief Executive Officer at SmartBuyGlasses:
Localization is key to global expansion and can be accomplished even in markets in which you are not physically present
through strong understanding of the local market, a customer-focused culture and strong service providers.
Creating a familiar, trusted checkout experience increases conversion and can make the difference between success and
failure when entering a new market
Credit cards are still the dominant online payment method globally, but there are many individual markets, for example
many countries in Europe, where alternative payment methods have significant or even majority market share
Successfully entering a new market requires careful analysis of market conditions, and understanding the payments
landscape helps create a locally optimized checkout experience.
Managing payments originating from 35 different markets can be very complicated. A full service payment provider
such as Ingenico ePayments reduces the complexity by providing a large portfolio of payment products through a single
connection, with a single report and single remittance.
Cross-border selling is challenging. Different languages,
currencies, payment habits and payment products all
add complexity. Ingenico ePayments helps remove this
complexity. With experts based in every key market we
share insights that help merchants establish and grow their
business around the world. We’ll help you optimize your
payment processes and connect with consumers all over
the globe by delivering the localized payment experience
that’s right for your customers, wherever they are.
We provide consolidated financial reporting, including
multiple payment products in a single report and offer
remittance of multi-currency funds in a single preferred
currency. Our goal is to keep international eCommerce
simple and manageable, so that you can focus on
expanding your business.