Context

A global retailer had entered the CEE region through acquisition, inheriting a strong physical store footprint but effectively zero online presence in most of its new markets. UK HQ wanted to roll out the parent brand's e-commerce experience across the region; local realities — payments, logistics, consumer behaviour, regulatory regime, language — were materially different in every market. There was no existing playbook for launching a UK-headquartered sportswear brand into Czech, Hungarian, Romanian, Baltic, and Balkan markets.

What we led

• Built the regional digital trading function from scratch — including hiring a team across markets, when the parent entity was still transitioning to support the new brand.
• Launched the brand's online store in each market sequentially, each requiring its own market-entry plan: payment-method localisation, last-mile partnerships, returns logistics, tax registration, language and currency, and a local-channel paid media stack.
• Wrote the launch playbook in flight — first market took the longest, each subsequent market launched in a fraction of the time.
• Acted as the bridge between UK HQ brand standards and local-market reality — pushing back on brand-led assumptions that didn't survive contact with CEE consumer behaviour, while protecting the global brand integrity that mattered.

Outcome

• Multiple e-commerce sites and mobile apps launched across the region, each operating at scale within 12 months of go-live.
• Every launched market reached and held profitability targets within the first full trading year.
• Built the regional digital team and operating cadence that the business still runs today.

Context

A global retailer had entered the CEE region through acquisition, inheriting a strong physical store footprint but effectively zero online presence in most of its new markets. UK HQ wanted to roll out the parent brand's e-commerce experience across the region; local realities — payments, logistics, consumer behaviour, regulatory regime, language — were materially different in every market. There was no existing playbook for launching a UK-headquartered sportswear brand into Czech, Hungarian, Romanian, Baltic, and Balkan markets.

What we led

• Built the regional digital trading function from scratch — including hiring a team across markets, when the parent entity was still transitioning to support the new brand.
• Launched the brand's online store in each market sequentially, each requiring its own market-entry plan: payment-method localisation, last-mile partnerships, returns logistics, tax registration, language and currency, and a local-channel paid media stack.
• Wrote the launch playbook in flight — first market took the longest, each subsequent market launched in a fraction of the time.
• Acted as the bridge between UK HQ brand standards and local-market reality — pushing back on brand-led assumptions that didn't survive contact with CEE consumer behaviour, while protecting the global brand integrity that mattered.

Outcome

• Multiple e-commerce sites and mobile apps launched across the region, each operating at scale within 12 months of go-live.
• Every launched market reached and held profitability targets within the first full trading year.
• Built the regional digital team and operating cadence that the business still runs today.