Member Article

Bdaily talks global expansion with Berghaus’ Richard Cotter

How do you grow an established UK company into a globally recognised lifestyle brand? Bdaily spoke to Richard Cotter, brand president for Berghaus, to find out.

Based in Berghaus’ international headquarters in Newcastle, Richard has been responsible for growing the company’s brand and reputation in markets all over the world, and he says they’re only half-way there.

With established markets across Europe, Asia Pacific and soon South America, Richard explained how Berghaus mapped out its expansion journey:

“When you expand into new markets it’s not a quick fix, and anyone who uses it as such is going to have a rude awakening. It’s about a strategic plan for new markets, consumers and products and that takes time.

“We started growing out of the UK in 2006, which was when we really put the investment and focus onto a global plan rather than a UK-centric plan.

“We’re just coming up to seven years since we launched the growth plan, and I think we’ve got about another seven to go.”

As one of the most recognisable and well-known outdoor equipment brands in the UK, Richard told Bdaily about how they plan to tackle ‘the big one’; the U.S.A:

“Everyone always looks at us and says, well, why aren’t you in the U.S.A? Although it’s an attractive market because it’s the biggest outdoor market in the world, it’s also very competitive.

“My view was to think, lets tackle the USA when we’re ready, and now we’re strong enough…and we’re planning our launch into the U.S. in 2014.”

So how do you identify your market when you’re looking for global brand expansion? Richard explained:

“We have a set of parameters for how we measure market suitability. For example if you take the BRIC markets, China and Russia are of huge interest to us, but India isn’t because although the attributes we need are there in India, they’re not as clearly defined.

“We’re not doing anything in Brazil and we have no intention of going to that country because it’s not a suitable market for us to be successful.

“Business model is very important too, and understanding how it’s going to make you successful in any particular country, and every one is different.

“For example, our brand in Germany would be easy to run from the UK, and the products would be fairly similar. However if you look at a market like Japan, you have to have a completely different business model to service it because all the requirements are very different.

“We have a core fundamental, we’re protecting the customer from the elements. But when you step past the core fundamental then you need to question the way you do business.”

Berghaus is a company rooted in the North East, after it was set up in the 1960s by climbers and mountaineers Peter Lockey and Gordon Davison.

Richard spoke about how important it is to remain in the North East for Berghaus as a brand and company:

“There’s no substitute for being ‘in market’. The North East is important to us because it’s the home of the brand.

“If we were in the centre of London, we’d be in a place which is essentially the antithesis of who we are as a brand, so we’d struggle to attract the skill set, knowledge and experience.

“The North East will always be our home and our heartland; it’ll always be where the real brand’s driving, creative process is based.

“For me it’s about living the brand and living the outdoors. If you’re not passionate about it then it’s tough to be involved in this environment.”

Richard will be speaking at the Northern Expo on April 17th at the Newcastle Falcons.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .