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.