Delights Logo (permission granted)

UK internet firm expands into Europe

An enterprising British company supplying themed goods for children's parties has launched a website in Germany.

Party Delights, based in Greater Manchester, is also launching a site for France in the new year.

Established in 2001, the company has expanded quickly and has seen sales increase by at least 10% each year. As well as its e-commerce foray into Germany and France, the firm has also started selling personalised cards and gifts.

Sales at Party Delights were recorded at £12 million for the year to June, up from £9.5 million for the previous 12 months, and is predicting sales worth £14.5 million for its current financial year.

The number of staff working out of the firm’s warehouse in the area of Irlam in Salford has increased by an annual 25% in each of the past few years, now totalling 105.

The German website delights.de is the first of several European sites to be launched over the coming months. Party Delights has employed German-speaking operatives at its call centre to handle any new customers from there.

Sales Director and Company Owner Steve Graham said: “This has been a large project for us both in terms of logistics and technology and we are very confident that the site will give German users a great shopping experience.”

The firm also runs a website selling fancy dress costumes, several “white label” sites for retailers such as Tesco and will sell personalised cards, invitations and banners for boy band One Direction.

For information about building and optimising a successful world-class website, see our page on Web Optimisation for International Trade: Masterclasses

© Press Association