Case Study
Breaking Borders: How a UK Brand Expanded Successfully into the U.S. with Marketplace Valet
Turning Out-of-Stocks into Opportunity and Poor Listings into Profit
About the project
A leading UK-based manufacturer of specialty DIY and maintenance products had found great success across Europe on Amazon. Eager to grow globally, they expanded to the U.S. market. But without a localized strategy, they struggled with visibility, inventory limitations, and inconsistent sales.
Marketplace Valet stepped in to help them stabilize operations, localize their brand presence, and build a foundation for long-term success on Amazon U.S., eBay, and Walmart.
Challenge
This UK-based brand had seen tremendous success on Amazon throughout Europe. But when they decided to expand to the U.S. marketplace, their growth stalled. The U.S. launch was hindered by poorly localized content, low visibility in search, and constant out-of-stock issues.
Their top-performing products in Europe were consistently unavailable in the U.S. due to limited Amazon FBA storage capacity. To make overseas shipping cost-effective, they had to send large shipments, forcing them to wait until inventory was critically low to replenish. The result? Their best sellers were frequently out of stock—and when they were in stock, they were overstocked, tying up space and limiting the brand’s ability to expand its U.S. catalog.
Additionally, their Amazon content was being overridden by international versions of their listings, which hurt click-through rates and customer trust in the U.S. market.
Proposed Solution
Marketplace Valet stepped in as both a strategic and operational partner.
✅ Localized Content Optimization
We rewrote and rebuilt their product listings with a focus on U.S. search behavior. Since over 90% of their top 20 organic keywords were unbranded, it was critical to optimize content for category-specific and descriptive search terms rather than relying on brand name recognition.
✅ Interim Warehousing & Inventory Flow Management
Marketplace Valet acted as an interim warehouse in the U.S., allowing the brand to send cost-effective, bulk ocean shipments without overwhelming Amazon’s limited FBA storage. This opened the door for consistent, smaller replenishments to FBA—keeping products in stock and inventory levels balanced.
✅ FBM Expansion Across Multiple Channels
With inventory now in our warehouse, we enabled FBM fulfillment for Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, unlocking new revenue streams and expanding reach beyond Amazon alone.
✅ Bundling & Kit Creation
We developed and tested value-added bundles using existing SKUs. The test was a success—and today, Marketplace Valet actively assembles and fulfills kits for FBA, helping increase average order value and diversify the product catalog.
✅ Improved Forecasting & Ocean Freight Coordination
We worked closely with the client’s freight teams to create a forecasting system that supports better lead time planning. With tighter projections, we’ve helped minimize the risk of future stockouts—ensuring top SKUs stay in stock and new SKUs have room to launch.
✅ Global Content Control
We also assisted with ongoing content control issues caused by overlapping international listings. Our team ensured that U.S.-specific images and copy remained intact, resolving long-standing issues that impacted listing consistency and branding.
Results
While we can’t share exact numbers, the growth speaks for itself:
✔️ Major reduction in out-of-stock periods for top SKUs
✔️ Consistent weekly FBA replenishments instead of sporadic, oversized shipments
✔️ Increased catalog size thanks to freed-up FBA capacity
✔️ Expansion into new marketplaces (eBay, Walmart) via FBM
✔️ Successful implementation of bundles—now a core part of their U.S. FBA catalog
✔️ Clear path to sustainable long-term growth with better freight and inventory planning
Conclusion
Global expansion isn’t just about sending inventory to a new marketplace—it requires a deep understanding of regional search behavior, fulfillment logistics, and the infrastructure to support long-term growth.
By partnering with Marketplace Valet, this UK-based brand overcame the typical growing pains of U.S. expansion and turned chaos into consistency. From content to kitting to inventory control, MPV provided the hands-on strategy and execution needed to thrive in a competitive market.
“Marketplace Valet didn’t just help us stay in stock—they gave us the infrastructure to grow in a completely new market. From content to fulfillment to strategy, they’ve been a true partner in our U.S. expansion.”
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