In September Sparkles kicked off their collaboration with FSG by visiting us in Berlin. Sparkles (Pretty Orange in Germany) has been active in the Netherlands and Belgium since their start in 2011 will now bring their beautiful cards and personalizable invitations onto the German market.
Germany is a logical next step
Matthijs Schalk (Marketing & innovation officer at Sparkles) says: ‘Germany is a logical next step for us as it is our neighbour and at the same time the biggest market in Western Europe.’ When looking for a partner in Germany knowledge on localisation was key. ‘We found this in FSG and clicked immediately in terms of content and culture.’ says Matthijs.
‘Sparkles is still setting up the basics, i.e. offering the products that German consumers are used to buying. An important distinguishing element for us is the degree of personalisation.’ Matthijs adds. ‘We consciously give the customer a lot of creative freedom, so that the card really becomes something of their own. In addition, we continue to develop in offering special materials, such as real wood.’
What is Sparkles looking forward to the most in this collaboration with FSG? ‘The energy and professionalism!’ says Matthijs. ‘From the very first talks, we noticed a hunger to make Pretty Orange a success together.’
A “pretty” cool challenge
FSG’s CEO Radboud Langenhorts says: ‘From the first talk it was clear that we spoke the same language in terms of how we work, e-comm in general and the amount of (bad) jokes. I am really looking forward to this partnership. On top of that there are some serious cultural differences when it comes to how “ze Germans” celebrate life events and invite their loved ones. Therefore growing Pretty Orange in Germany will be a “pretty” cool challenge that FSG will accept with open arms.’
Hermance Wadin, Country Manager of Pretty Orange at FSG, happily excepts this challenge and adds: ‘I’m enthusiastic about the partnership. We’re on the same page as Sparkles and ready to implement a data-driven iterative way of working and learning’.
Would you like to benefit from the e-commerce opportunities in Germany? Then get a German perspective on your marketing. If you’d like, we can provide you with that perspective. Feel free to reach out to us.