Internationalization in 28 markets and within just a few months? That sounds utopian, but it is feasible. The Fulda-based lighting specialist Lampenwelt has proven this with its internationalization.
internationalization in EU, Norway, UK and Switzerland
The first step in the internationalization of Lampenwelt was to define the goal: to cover the EU as well as Norway, Great Britain and Switzerland across all relevant marketplaces. “We don’t think that the offers cannibalize each other. 80 percent of the buying process begins with product research on marketplaces. So we have to be present where our average customer is. Just relying on Amazon is not enough.” This is how Miro Mevius, Head of Marketplaces at Lampenwelt, outlined the strategy of Lampenwelt in a stage talk at the Marketplace Convention.
selecting the relevant marketplaces
The second step in internationalization is selecting the relevant marketplaces. Miro divides them into three groups:
- Group 1 includes indispensable marketplaces that generate a large share of sales. Collaboration with a dedicated key account manager is close, and investments in advertising and special promotions are high.
- Group 2 includes marketplaces of secondary importance. They are not proactively cultivated; the motto is more along the lines of “take what is offered.”
- Group 3 includes marketplaces that are not doing so well, but which fit into the overall concept for some reason, for example because an additional country hardly means any more effort in a certain marketplace setting.
In addition to global players, local heroes in the respective countries are important because they often enjoy a great deal of trust among customers. They also often have the necessary market penetration to ensure the desired market presence for the lamp world. For him, this includes, for example, BOL in the Benelux countries or Allegro in Poland.
focus on profitability
After that, all efforts are focused on profitability. For Miro, this means: get your basics in order!
- Ensure good data: clean product data and good content are the be-all and end-all for a fast and successful marketplace business. They reduce the effort required for product listing and customer support, as well as returns costs. “Otherwise, the high advertising budgets are simply not worthwhile,” Miro is convinced.
- Get your IT in shape: only if processes run smoothly can they be scaled quickly. And: anything that doesn’t have to be done by hand saves time and money. That’s why he always tries to automate as much as possible, for example, refunds for returns.
- Build a good team: teams that are too large complicate a lot of things unnecessarily. At Lampenwelt, there are only five marketplace employees.
The team works on the basis of fact sheets that are created for each country. All departments involved have to complete them by a given time, adding questions and their own comments. “If it’s not in there by day X, it no longer exists,” emphasizes Miro. This is how he avoids unproductive communication, in which hundreds of e-mails are sent back and forth.
The focus on profitability also means constantly reviewing the performance of the various marketplaces in the respective countries. “Marketplaces are expensive to connect and maintain. If a marketplace is no longer profitable, I have to shut it down.” But before taking this ultimate step, it can be worthwhile to get in touch with the provider and ask for more data, for example. This can then serve as a basis for optimizing the range to a limited number of top sellers.
time-to-market: 14 days
For Miro, these stable basics are the foundation for growth – and a time to market of 14 days. That’s why it was important for him to have everything technologically bundled in one tool. “We turned everything inside out in our IT and chose ChannelEngine as our new ERP,” he says. This way, he can see everything at a glance and has more time for other things – for example, internationalization in record time.
What’s missing in internationalization?
What is still missing? “We are not yet present in Central and Eastern Europe. However, we see great potential there and if the opportunity arises, we will be there,” says Miro. He also sees room for improvement in logistics, because too much still has to be reworked manually – an issue he wants to tackle in 2025.
Not even a year after the start of the internationalization, he is satisfied. Because his marketplace concept is a success: “The bottom line is that we are positive about our marketplace business. Since the start, we have grown by several thousand percent.”