A Retailer's Guide to International Expansion

When domestic success is achieved for a retailer, the common next step is to consider expansion internationally in order to scale the operation. Achieving home success with customers is likely the result of years of research, investment and hard work, so it’s vital that a retailer doesn’t take this bold next step lightly. International expansion has the possibility of being highly lucrative, but it also has the possibility of being highly damaging if not executed well. It’s important that a retailer isn’t so arrogant to believe that success in their home country automatically means that this will transfer to a new country; this is definitely not guaranteed.

Many successful retailers have failed when they moved into a new country due to a lack of research about the new territory. Many things come into play, including culture, infrastructure, politics, taxation and much more. A retailer needs to invest resources to investigate the best place for them to move into, and shouldn’t try to target a huge volume of new places all at once.

The people at Storetraffic have put together the below infographic which examines international expansion for retailers. It details why a retailer would first consider expansion; highlights some main factors that should be considered when an expansion plan is put together; investigates a number of instances where international expansion failed for retailers; looks at some expert opinions on international expansion; and lots more.