Mothercare
Building a global commercial system, not a set of websites
International ecommerce built from zero to roughly £70m annualised across a 65-market footprint, run with 50 franchise partners.
Context
A well-known brand with deep franchise relationships across the Middle East, Asia, Europe and Africa, but almost no international online presence. Every market had a different partner, a different level of digital maturity and a different view of what ecommerce meant.
The commercial problem
Brand demand existed in markets where the brand could not transact. Franchise partners wanted growth but could not each fund and staff a credible ecommerce operation. There was no central capability to build it for them, and no funding line to pay for one.
The complexity
Payments, logistics, duty, returns, language, catalogue, pricing and promotion all differed by market. Some partners had strong retail teams and no digital ones. Others had ambition and no infrastructure. Central control would kill local relevance; total local freedom would kill the economics.
Strategic choices
Build a repeatable ecommerce-in-a-box architecture — one commercial and technical template that could be deployed market by market with local payments, fulfilment and proposition variation on top. Central control of brand, platform and trading standards; local flexibility where it earned money. Fund the programme from the revenue it created rather than a large upfront capital ask.
What changed
DTC, marketplaces, mobile and omnichannel launched in sequence rather than all at once. Partners were onboarded with a clear operating model, trading calendar and performance rhythm. The team moved from project delivery to running an international commercial business with weekly numbers.
Commercial outcome
£0 to £45m by year two, and approximately £70m annualised by the end of year three, across 65 markets and 50 franchise partners — self-funding as it scaled.
Lessons
Repeatability beats bespoke. Fund growth from growth where you can. And an international programme is a partner business first, a technology programme second.