The Global Presence of Clippy Bags - Essay Example

The bags look very elegant and girlie. The range also includes make-up bags, umbrellas, lamp shades, and stationery. Nowadays in big posh markets, Clippy kits are being sold including Selfridges, Harrods, and John Lewis. The Clippy products are also being sold at plenty of boutique-type shops across the UK and a growing number of stores in Europe. There have been celebrities also such as Jools, Jamie Oliver, and Helena Bonham Carter who were seen with such Clippy bags. At the start of the business, they had to develop their product and brand but after the recession, they concentrated on more sales.

Most of the independent shops were lowering their orders so that they can again reassess the company. They enjoyed the way the product started getting developed but it got to the stage where they focused on increasing their sales, thereby targeting the Japanese market. This paper will try to analyze how Clippy bags can expand their global presence. In this age of globalization, it is very necessary to go global. Clippy Bags has itself recognized this need and has tried to take into account a global expansion strategy.

But till now it has concentrated its business mainly in European markets and Japan. A significant potential market is still unexplored. This paper will first look into the current exporting strategy of Clippy bags, then it will move on to analyze the international business strategy that it can consider for its global development. For this purpose, this paper will consider theoretical perspectives as well as practical considerations. 2. Strategies for global expansion: 2.1 Exporting and importing: The businesswoman Calypso Rose has run the stationary and accessories business since when she was just 23 years of age.

The brand name Clippy has become a successful international venture across six different markets thereby strengthening its base in the UK with the help of the London International Trade Team of UK Trade and Investment (UKTI). (GLE, 2010) The company which was owned by the mother-daughter team doubled its export turnover in the year 2009-10, and during the first half of 2010, it secured new international deals worth 45000 dollars, which was a direct impact after a market visit of Japan.

The entrepreneur Calypso Rose explained that she began by making one bag on the kitchen table for herself only. The bags became very popular among the masses. At that time she was on the first rung of a TV career, but it was a matter of weeks before she decided to change direction and start up a new venture in business. (GLE, 2010) Clippy established a strong foothold in the UK market before its potential for international success was recognized in 2007 by Gail Williams, UKTI London International Trade Adviser (ITA).

Gail encountered the firm at a home, giftware, and fashion trade show, and saw its innovative, customizable, design-led, product range of handbags, makeup bags, umbrellas, and stationery accessories of Clippy highly suitable for overseas markets. It was not long before the company was benefiting from expert UKTI advice about the giftware sector in the UK and around the world. (GLE, 2010) Calypso said that the strategic advice of Gail Williams at the early stage of their export journey was really useful.