Exporting to the USA

Nomadic Watches, a Belfast-based company, specialises in modern, handcrafted timepieces that aim to connect people to Belfast's rich craft and innovation heritage. Peter McAuley, founder of this luxury watch company, explains how the business began exporting to the USA.

Exporting to the USA

"While we have a physical retail store in Belfast, we're primarily an e-commerce business and have exported to over 40 countries worldwide, from Japan to Canada. Over 70% of our sales come from outside Northern Ireland. Our core export markets are the UK, the USA, and the Republic of Ireland (RoI)."

"The Nomadic brand strongly resonates with the US consumer base, and our price point, starting around 1,000 US dollars, positions us in a less crowded segment of the US market. The market potential is significant, and we've already seen some promising initial traction through small-scale influencer collaborations. This led us to increase our efforts in the US market."

Advantages and challenges

"The US provides a substantial market that is hard for those of us in Northern Ireland to fully grasp. The average disposable income is also significantly higher than in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, making purchasing decisions in our market easier."

"Although there is no language barrier, US culture differs from Northern Ireland. Marketing messages must be reimagined to fit local markets, even on a state-by-state basis."

Support and guidance

"Invest NI has supported us through a trade accelerator grant. This funding enabled us to attend key trade shows in New York, Chicago, and Austin."

"Building on this, we received support from the Ambition to Grow programme, which allowed us to hire three new staff members and invest in video content and marketing assets for our US campaigns. We also utilised the Invest NI Business Information Centre and used consultants to assess the best entry points and develop our strategy."

Success of our business

"We have achieved significant success in building our business in the US. However, we have only scratched the surface of the market's full potential, and our next step is to develop key retail partnerships."

"Our approach has involved leveraging local influencers combined with Facebook and Google ads to build brand awareness and an e-commerce presence. We have then reinforced this with physical trade shows. I believe this approach has been effective and relatively low-risk. I wouldn't change our strategy."

Looking to the future

"For now, our core focus is on developing the UK, RoI, US, and Middle East markets. We explore the potential of new markets by initially testing small amounts of e-commerce ad spend in local markets and then assessing the response."

"Our mission with Nomadic is to put Belfast on the map as a centre for watchmaking. Our future goals are to continue expanding our product offering, invest further in local manufacturing, and develop physical retail stores in our key markets."