Now launching Radley London, a UK-based brand breaking into the US
Radley London — who just opened its first-ever US store powered by Leap last week — is just one of the many international brands that has expanded into the US through brick and mortar retail. Here’s our take on the movement and how Leap is proving to be the go-to Platform for these brands.
Today, more than ever, international brands are doubling down on the US. From Ganni,Byredo, Muji, Veja and Gymshark, brands and retailers from abroad are looking to the US to drive growth. By launching US-based ecommerce and opening up their first stores, these brands are entering the US market with a full omnichannel strategy.
Radley, the popular London-based brand best known for its handbags and accessories, just opened it’s first US store at The Mall at Short Hills in New Jersey. The brand leveraged the Leap Platform for this expansion and is excited to grow their brand and business through the power of brick and mortal retail. And there’s more to come.
Why are international brands looking to the US?
“There is great interest from international retailers, because the U.S. is one of the most dynamic retail markets in the world,” Garrick Brown, Head of Retail Research for the Americas at Cushman & Wakefield, told ICSC last fall. Since these companies have a proven brand with winning products, they see the US market as valuable for growth. Plus, the American spending power combined with their love of discovering new brands (especially of international origin), makes the US an especially attractive market.
“We started making our U.S. plans at the beginning of 2019,” Marisa Horden, founder of London-based jewelry brand Missoma, told the Zoe Report. Her team knew expanding into the US would be a major undertaking, but with 20% of their sales coming from the US organically, well worth it.
How are they doing it? And what are the challenges?
International brands know they need to be in the US. But it’s not easy. From shipping, to customs, to taxes and managerial oversight, the US is a complex market to enter. Once you enter, it’s even harder to win, with competition in every category and brand relevance harder to come by.
Often, to overcome these complexities, brands are relying on partners. For example, Brazilian-based brand Farm Rio saw success with its collaboration with Adidas and Anthropologie last year, establishing their brand enough to make the case for a New York City Store.
It also helps to understand the US culture — as Missoma’s Horden also noted. “We are learning all about the cultural moments which are important to our community in the U.S., all the holidays, sporting events, and festivals through which we can spark creativity and fuel collaboration whilst inspiring confidence,” she stated, highlighting that community building increases customer loyalty especially when entering new markets.
Other brands are relying on ecommerce and a network of US 3rd party logistics companies to make their mark. However, brands are quickly realizing competition is great and CACs are higher in the US, plus the costs to ship and return continues to rise.
Enter Retail. Yes brick & mortar retail.
International brands are successfully planting flags in the US and betting on branded stores to win — even now. Retail stores offer a unique window into these brands, selling not just products but also showcasing a brand’s story that can only resonate IRL. From establishing credibility, to creating a US based logistics hub, to lowering the customer acquisition costs, brick-and-mortar retail gives these brands a leg a up. As brands build their US business and adapt their strategy and offerings, first-hand qualitative and quantitative insights realized through stores are paramount to success.
These stores offer customers immersive experiences that online shopping can’t replicate and if done properly is enhanced by clientelling, styling appointments and a well-trained team. In addition, the International Council of Shopping Centers found opening a store helps boost traffic to a retailer’s website by 37 percent in that same market.
The Leap Platform at work
Due to a lack of on the ground resources and capabilities, and knowledge of local cities and real estate, international brands can run into a lot of challenges when looking to open stores. As highlighted by Charlie Holiday’s Chicago pop up and most recently, Radley London’s store in Northern NJ, the Leap Platform makes launching a store in the US completely turnkey. By handling all aspects — including real estate, store design & development, staffing and technology, Leap makes retail expansion easy.
International brands looking to drive growth in the US is only going to accelerate. As shoppers continue to seek a fully omnichannel experience and the costs of customer acquisition continue to rise online, brands want and need stores to win. At Leap, we’re excited to be a part of this movement, powering retail not only for US based brands like Naadam, Koio, and Faherty but also for growing international brands too.
