How Kärcher built a checkout that feels local across Europe
Kärcher, the global benchmark in cleaning technology, expanded its direct-to-consumer online shops across Europe, market by market.
Kärcher, the global benchmark in cleaning technology, expanded its direct-to-consumer online shops across Europe, market by market.
Electronics & Technology
No matter how well-known a brand may be, ultimately it is also the familiar, local shopping experience that provides a key impetus for a successful purchase. This was precisely the challenge facing Kärcher. When it comes to cleanliness and innovation, Kärcher is the undisputed global benchmark for cleaning technology.To continuously deepen their connection with their customers, the traditional company is increasingly focusing on direct-to-consumer (D2C) business through its own national online shops.
About Kärcher
Kärcher, the global benchmark in cleaning technology, expanded its direct-to-consumer online shops across Europe, market by market.
But it had a problem. Shoppers tended to fill their carts, then abandon them when their preferred local payment method wasn’t available. By consolidating European payment methods through Mollie, Kärcher replaced a patchwork of country-by-country contracts with a single integration that offered customers in every market the local payment methods they’re used to.
No matter how well-known a brand may be, ultimately it is also the familiar, local shopping experience that provides a key impetus for a successful purchase. This was precisely the challenge facing Kärcher. When it comes to cleanliness and innovation, Kärcher is the undisputed global benchmark for cleaning technology.To continuously deepen their connection with their customers, the traditional company is increasingly focusing on direct-to-consumer (D2C) business through its own national online shops.
About Kärcher
Kärcher, the global benchmark in cleaning technology, expanded its direct-to-consumer online shops across Europe, market by market.
But it had a problem. Shoppers tended to fill their carts, then abandon them when their preferred local payment method wasn’t available. By consolidating European payment methods through Mollie, Kärcher replaced a patchwork of country-by-country contracts with a single integration that offered customers in every market the local payment methods they’re used to.
No matter how well-known a brand may be, ultimately it is also the familiar, local shopping experience that provides a key impetus for a successful purchase. This was precisely the challenge facing Kärcher. When it comes to cleanliness and innovation, Kärcher is the undisputed global benchmark for cleaning technology.To continuously deepen their connection with their customers, the traditional company is increasingly focusing on direct-to-consumer (D2C) business through its own national online shops.
About Kärcher
Kärcher, the global benchmark in cleaning technology, expanded its direct-to-consumer online shops across Europe, market by market.
But it had a problem. Shoppers tended to fill their carts, then abandon them when their preferred local payment method wasn’t available. By consolidating European payment methods through Mollie, Kärcher replaced a patchwork of country-by-country contracts with a single integration that offered customers in every market the local payment methods they’re used to.
The challenge
In the checkout process, customer trust is the decisive success factor. When a customer’s usual payment method isn’t available, it can create doubt and lead to abandoned carts.
Dutch customers expect iDEAL or WERO, not a generic card form.
Belgian shoppers reach for Bancontact by default.
Buyers across Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Nordics increasingly expect flexible ways to pay for bigger purchases, from installment options like Klarna to wallets such as MobilePay or Twint.
Instalment and invoice payment, in particular, has shifted from a nice-to-have to a standard expectation in this market, and skipping it means potentially losing higher average order values. Behind the scenes, the problem compounded: every new country shop meant another contract, another technical integration, and a longer wait before it could launch.
The challenge
In the checkout process, customer trust is the decisive success factor. When a customer’s usual payment method isn’t available, it can create doubt and lead to abandoned carts.
Dutch customers expect iDEAL or WERO, not a generic card form.
Belgian shoppers reach for Bancontact by default.
Buyers across Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Nordics increasingly expect flexible ways to pay for bigger purchases, from installment options like Klarna to wallets such as MobilePay or Twint.
Instalment and invoice payment, in particular, has shifted from a nice-to-have to a standard expectation in this market, and skipping it means potentially losing higher average order values. Behind the scenes, the problem compounded: every new country shop meant another contract, another technical integration, and a longer wait before it could launch.
The challenge
In the checkout process, customer trust is the decisive success factor. When a customer’s usual payment method isn’t available, it can create doubt and lead to abandoned carts.
Dutch customers expect iDEAL or WERO, not a generic card form.
Belgian shoppers reach for Bancontact by default.
Buyers across Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Nordics increasingly expect flexible ways to pay for bigger purchases, from installment options like Klarna to wallets such as MobilePay or Twint.
Instalment and invoice payment, in particular, has shifted from a nice-to-have to a standard expectation in this market, and skipping it means potentially losing higher average order values. Behind the scenes, the problem compounded: every new country shop meant another contract, another technical integration, and a longer wait before it could launch.
The solution
Kärcher chose to partner with Mollie to strategically consolidate the complexity of international payment processing. Through a single interface, the team can offer and manage European and regional payment methods without negotiating and maintaining a separate setup for every market.
That flexibility is crucial in Kärcher’s premium device segment, where a higher price tag can be the difference between a completed order and an abandoned cart. Buy now, pay later options ease that pressure at checkout, spreading the cost for the customer while increasing average order value.
Rather than treating each country’s preferences as its own technical project, Kärcher can add the payment methods a market expects and let Mollie handle the infrastructure behind them, including the regulatory detail that comes with operating across so many markets at once.
The solution
Kärcher chose to partner with Mollie to strategically consolidate the complexity of international payment processing. Through a single interface, the team can offer and manage European and regional payment methods without negotiating and maintaining a separate setup for every market.
That flexibility is crucial in Kärcher’s premium device segment, where a higher price tag can be the difference between a completed order and an abandoned cart. Buy now, pay later options ease that pressure at checkout, spreading the cost for the customer while increasing average order value.
Rather than treating each country’s preferences as its own technical project, Kärcher can add the payment methods a market expects and let Mollie handle the infrastructure behind them, including the regulatory detail that comes with operating across so many markets at once.
The solution
Kärcher chose to partner with Mollie to strategically consolidate the complexity of international payment processing. Through a single interface, the team can offer and manage European and regional payment methods without negotiating and maintaining a separate setup for every market.
That flexibility is crucial in Kärcher’s premium device segment, where a higher price tag can be the difference between a completed order and an abandoned cart. Buy now, pay later options ease that pressure at checkout, spreading the cost for the customer while increasing average order value.
Rather than treating each country’s preferences as its own technical project, Kärcher can add the payment methods a market expects and let Mollie handle the infrastructure behind them, including the regulatory detail that comes with operating across so many markets at once.
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“To succeed globally, it's not enough to know local payment preferences – you have to serve them.”
Frank Böhringer, Executive Vice President Global Sales, Retail & Digital Channels at Kärcher SE & Co. KG
The results
It’s still early days in the partnership, so we don’t have any hard figures yet, but what the team can confirm is that managing payments through Mollie is many times easier than coordinating a long list of providers one by one, market by market:
One partner simplifies a process that previously involved painfully maintaining a growing list of individually negotiated contracts.
They now manage only one technical integration, instead of separate interfaces to build and maintain per market.
This efficiency means meaningfully less admin time spent coordinating payment methods across countries.
For a company opening new shops regularly, that saved time compounds. Every market Kärcher adds from here starts from a single, already-built foundation rather than a fresh round of contracts and integration work, and that’s time the ecommerce team can put toward improving the shopping experience itself, rather than the plumbing behind it.
The results
It’s still early days in the partnership, so we don’t have any hard figures yet, but what the team can confirm is that managing payments through Mollie is many times easier than coordinating a long list of providers one by one, market by market:
One partner simplifies a process that previously involved painfully maintaining a growing list of individually negotiated contracts.
They now manage only one technical integration, instead of separate interfaces to build and maintain per market.
This efficiency means meaningfully less admin time spent coordinating payment methods across countries.
For a company opening new shops regularly, that saved time compounds. Every market Kärcher adds from here starts from a single, already-built foundation rather than a fresh round of contracts and integration work, and that’s time the ecommerce team can put toward improving the shopping experience itself, rather than the plumbing behind it.
The results
It’s still early days in the partnership, so we don’t have any hard figures yet, but what the team can confirm is that managing payments through Mollie is many times easier than coordinating a long list of providers one by one, market by market:
One partner simplifies a process that previously involved painfully maintaining a growing list of individually negotiated contracts.
They now manage only one technical integration, instead of separate interfaces to build and maintain per market.
This efficiency means meaningfully less admin time spent coordinating payment methods across countries.
For a company opening new shops regularly, that saved time compounds. Every market Kärcher adds from here starts from a single, already-built foundation rather than a fresh round of contracts and integration work, and that’s time the ecommerce team can put toward improving the shopping experience itself, rather than the plumbing behind it.
Looking forward
Kärcher expects to keep adding markets and payment methods as its direct-to-consumer business continues to grow. With the operational side consolidated, the ecommerce team can spend more of its time providing a checkout that feels local, wherever their customers are shopping from.
Looking forward
Kärcher expects to keep adding markets and payment methods as its direct-to-consumer business continues to grow. With the operational side consolidated, the ecommerce team can spend more of its time providing a checkout that feels local, wherever their customers are shopping from.
Looking forward
Kärcher expects to keep adding markets and payment methods as its direct-to-consumer business continues to grow. With the operational side consolidated, the ecommerce team can spend more of its time providing a checkout that feels local, wherever their customers are shopping from.
About Mollie
For Kärcher, local relevance has become the foundation for growth across Europe, and that’s the problem we help ambitious businesses solve every day.
We’re Mollie. A payments platform built for European business. We’ll work with you to manage your payments, reconciliation, reporting, fraud prevention, and financing – so you can focus on expanding your business, without expanding your headcount.
Let’s talk.
About Mollie
For Kärcher, local relevance has become the foundation for growth across Europe, and that’s the problem we help ambitious businesses solve every day.
We’re Mollie. A payments platform built for European business. We’ll work with you to manage your payments, reconciliation, reporting, fraud prevention, and financing – so you can focus on expanding your business, without expanding your headcount.
Let’s talk.
About Mollie
For Kärcher, local relevance has become the foundation for growth across Europe, and that’s the problem we help ambitious businesses solve every day.
We’re Mollie. A payments platform built for European business. We’ll work with you to manage your payments, reconciliation, reporting, fraud prevention, and financing – so you can focus on expanding your business, without expanding your headcount.
Let’s talk.
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