Reach is a company that enables online companies to reach customers anywhere in the world through a Merchant of Record (MOR) network. Sam Ranieri, CEO at Reach, recently talked with Mark Beresford (Director, London) about the trends in e-commerce and how B2B payments are ready for a thorough modernisation.

Q1: What inspired you to start Reach?

Even before the massive e-commerce boom that happened over the last few years, we knew that the online shift was going to happen. But when it comes to expanding globally, there are more barriers than most businesses can handle. Small businesses, especially, have a challenge selling cross-border because of the extremely high costs required to set up entities around the world. These small businesses are trying to keep up with, let alone compete with, Amazon and other massive e-commerce giants. We knew that there was a viable solution to enable these businesses to compete in the global market, and we had the technology and resources available to us to do it.

We completely reimagined the Merchant of Record (MOR) model so that we can process payments locally on behalf of the merchant. Businesses that can’t afford to open entities in multiple countries can now make use of Reach to access these customers through local banking channels. Plus the consumer gets a seamless experience as if they were shopping at a local store. It’s a win-win situation for both the customer and the business.

Q2: What are some key trends in global e-commerce and how is Reach navigating any upcoming shifts?

We’re at a point where every brand needs to be online and, post-2020, they are. But now the competition is high and these brands need to figure out how to get the sale. This means finding customers all around the world, selling at accessible prices for their goods, and making the pathway to the “complete purchase” button as easy as possible. We’re already ahead of the game because our model does that for these businesses.

Now it’s about making it easier for them to access our services and building out our technology to work even more efficiently. One of our most recent launches is Reach Drop-In and it’s really making us more accessible to everyone - from small local retailers to larger B2B brands. This means that even more businesses will be able to implement our localized payment and checkouts, and we’ll free up some of our developer time for larger-scale custom projects for businesses that want more features.

One of the biggest things we’ve been working on though is improving and expanding our B2B services. Currently, B2B billing and payment systems are extremely outdated. Tons of global businesses still operate on wire transfers or cheques that take a long time to pass through banks and their cross-border controls. Even if your customers are paying you quickly, you’re still waiting for these clearances, and while you’re waiting, the FX fluctuations can be absolutely crushing you. And that doesn’t even account for customers that don’t pay you within the 30-day invoicing period. So, our services give these businesses a 90-day FX rate guarantee on top of our local checkout and local payment options.

Q3 What do you do in your spare time?

When it comes to mountain sports, Mark and Sam didn’t entirely agree, Mark prefers snowboarding, but in Sam’s spare time he loves skiing and when he is not in the mountains, he loves to play golf.

Q4 where is your favourite place to travel?

Sam also loves to travel; Hawaii and Europe are his favourite places to visit.

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