The strategy for what comes next.
Strategy, structure, and operational design for the businesses ready to grow beyond their home market.
For businesses that have built something that works, international expansion is one of the most significant growth opportunities available. New markets, new customers, new revenue — and for the businesses that do it well, a step-change in what the company becomes. The ambition is right. The opportunity is real.
But most international expansions don't fail because of bad strategy. They fail because of poor operational design. The gap between "we want to sell internationally" and "we have a working international operation" is larger than most founders anticipate — and the regulatory landscape in 2026 is making it larger, not smaller. Tax obligations, customs compliance, landed costs, returns architecture, vendor selection — these are the decisions that determine whether an expansion succeeds or becomes an expensive lesson.
This is what the data consistently shows: when brands are asked about their primary expansion challenge, the majority don't cite market selection. They cite delivery speed, operational reliability, and the practical complexity of making it work in a new market. The strategy is rarely the problem. The operations are.
Clarent's International Growth practice exists because of this reality. It helps founders, CEOs, and their teams design the right expansion model before they commit to it — and then build the operational infrastructure to make it work. Cross-border strategy and operational design, working together.
The opportunity is real. The window for preparation is now.
The global cross-border ecommerce market in 2025 — growing faster than domestic ecommerce. 98% of DTC brands expect international order volume to increase in 2026.
Passport Global / Common Thread Collective, 2025
Australian online spend in 2024, growing at 12% year-on-year — projected to reach $108B by 2030. A market that is larger and more brand-receptive than many European businesses realise.
Australia Post eCommerce Report, 2025
of brands cite delivery speed and operational reliability as their primary expansion challenge — not market selection. The strategy is rarely the problem. The operations are.
Passport Global / Shippo, 2025/26
The EU eliminates the €150 customs duty exemption on all commercial shipments. Brands shipping cross-border into Europe face new per-parcel costs, compliance obligations, and margin pressure. The window for operating model review is now.
European Commission, confirmed November 2025
Cross-border strategy and operational design, working together.
Clarent's International Growth advisory combines market entry strategy with hands-on operational design. It's built around the specific expansion ambitions of the business — not a templated framework applied to every market. Whether you're entering your first international market or restructuring an expansion that hasn't delivered what you expected, the work starts with your situation.
The advisory addresses the full arc of an expansion: market selection and feasibility, regulatory and tax pathway design, operating model architecture, vendor evaluation, landed cost modelling, returns design, and delivery promise validation. These aren't theoretical exercises. They're the operational decisions that determine whether an expansion works from day one.
Each engagement is led directly by an advisor with genuine, first-hand experience in cross-border operations — including deep expertise across the Europe, Australia, and North America corridors. The advice is independent and vendor-neutral. Clarent has no commercial ties to logistics providers, 3PLs, or technology platforms. The recommendations are driven entirely by what's right for your business.
Ready to explore what expansion could look like for your business? Start a conversation →
International expansion touches everything. The advisory should too.
Expanding into new markets creates demands that cross every part of a business. The leadership load intensifies. The operating model needs to evolve. Product positioning may need to adapt for new audiences. That's why International Growth sits within Clarent's connected model — alongside Human Performance, Operational Excellence, and Venture Design. Many of Clarent's most valuable engagements span more than one practice, not because we encourage it, but because the client's situation naturally crosses boundaries.
I built this practice because I've seen — first-hand — what happens when international expansion is treated as a strategy exercise and left to figure itself out operationally. The strategy is usually sound. The execution is where it breaks. Brands commit to a market, underestimate the operational complexity, and spend the next twelve months fixing what should have been designed from the start. The businesses that get it right are the ones that invest in the operating model with the same rigour they invest in the market opportunity. That conviction — that operational design is what separates successful expansion from expensive experimentation — is the foundation of this practice.
Carl Buik, Founder
Frequently asked questions
Who is International Growth advisory for?
Founders, CEOs, and their teams at businesses with proven home market performance that are preparing for — or already navigating — international expansion. Whether you're entering your first overseas market, restructuring an expansion that hasn't worked as expected, or building geographic diversification in response to trade changes, the starting point is your specific situation and ambition.
How is this different from other international expansion advice?
Clarent's approach combines market entry strategy with genuine operational depth — the tax, logistics, compliance, vendor, and customer experience decisions that determine whether an expansion actually works. The advice is independent and vendor-neutral, delivered by an advisor with first-hand experience in cross-border operations across the Europe, Australia, and North America corridors. Most advisory stops at the strategy. Clarent stays through the operational design.
What should businesses know about EU customs changes in July 2026?
From July 2026, the EU is eliminating the €150 customs duty exemption on all commercial shipments. This means new per-parcel costs, updated compliance obligations, and a meaningful change to the cost structure for any brand shipping cross-border into Europe. For businesses currently selling into the EU, the window for operating model review is now. For businesses planning EU entry, it's an important factor in designing the right expansion model from the start.