Established in 2013, Glamour Empire Ltd produce womenswear, specialising in comfortable and chic maternity clothing. Having captured key retail markets in the UK and across Europe, we recently spoke with Monika Milcarz, Company Director of Glamor Empire Ltd to find out how her ambitious growth strategy and her partnership with WorldFirst go hand in hand.

Big things start small. Can you tell us when Glamour Empire Ltd started and where it is now in 2021?

Glamour Empire started seven years ago in the UK as an ecommerce storefront selling maternity wear on both Amazon and eBay. At the very beginning, my retail audience was predominately in the UK and I would import stock from my sewing factory in Poland and list my products on these two marketplaces as well as my own website. With Amazon more oriented toward selling new products as opposed to used ones, I had a greater uplift in sales on Amazon, so I closed my eBay storefront. Once I moved all my stock over, my online business grew, expanding into Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Sweden, the Netherlands, and more recently, Poland. Whilst I still retain a strong UK customer base, around 85% of my sales can be attributed to buyers in Germany. Following the success of Glamour Empire Ltd I also opened Happy Mama Boutique as my own dedicated online retail store. www.happymama.co.uk

What made you expand your business internationally?

Product diversification was key to my growth strategy, and the introduction of new product lines outside of maternity clothing meant I was faced with new demands. By introducing new lines such as loungewear and dresses, the new products were different enough from my core retail offering (maternity), but similar enough to appeal to my existing customer base, as well fresh audiences. This allowed me to grow my market share and as I entered new European markets my sales increased, and I was able to access new revenue streams.

Where do we fit into your story – why did you choose WorldFirst?

Out of the seven years Glamour Empire Ltd has been operating, I have used WorldFirst for four and half of these years. I also use WorldFirst for my FX payments for my sister company Happy Mama Boutique. Prior to this, I was using an FX company based in Poland and making FX transfers directly from my bank account. This was very arduous and time consuming, especially when I needed guidance or support with troubleshooting a problem with my account. WorldFirst reached out to me and offered a full-service platform with a dedicated account manager to help with all my queries, and this was exactly what I needed. I haven’t looked back since – I have no complaints and the service is absolutely perfect.

What do you think sets WorldFirst apart from other providers in the market?

WorldFirst offers me peace of mind, and it’s this trust that has developed between me and my account manager Chris Allan that I feel places the company in a unique position. Knowing I have a dedicated account manager to support me gives me a sense of security and alleviates a lot of stress, because I know Chris is on hand to help me with whatever I need. This is a refreshing change from my last provider who didn’t offer me the same level of personalisation. I know if I call my account manager, my questions will be resolved straightaway without having to wait for hours like I did previously. In addition to this, I find the World Account platform very easy to use – this saves me a lot of time, because I don’t waste any business time trying to navigate the interface. Using World Account also means that I don’t have to look for services in particular countries or regions to facilitate my business needs; it offers everything under one roof and delivers a truly global solution. At one point in the past, I was selling my products in the USA and found it very time consuming and challenging to set up a bank account, but by comparison, setting up my currency account with WorldFirst was simple and efficient. To sum up my answer, I think WorldFirst stands out against competitors because of its dedicated account managers, full-service global platform, and intuitive user capabilities.

What’s next for Glamour Empire?

To keep growing! The plan is to keep enhancing the product offering and seller experience for both Glamour Empire and Happy Mama Boutique. In spite of Covid-19, we had great retail sales last year, including a spike at the start of the pandemic so we have no plans to slow down. Having already successfully entered new markets we hope to expand into new territories in the coming years and feel confident that WorldFirst will continue to support us in achieving our business goals through our trusted partnership.