Mothercare launches sites in US and India

Mothercare is expanding its product range in the US and India through its social networking site, Gurgle. The company has launched dedicated sites in both countries and will add links to the UK ecommerce site over the next few months.

It has been reported that the retailer denies the move comes ahead of plans to open stores in the US, although it is hoping to increase the size of its Indian portfolio from 20 to 100 stores over the next five years.

The mother and baby retailer has tailored the new versions of Gurgle to suit the local markets. The networking site was launched in the UK a year ago and currently has about 70,000 members.

Last week, Mothercare reported a 9.9% increase in total group sales for the 28 weeks to October 11. It saw a 0.8% increase in like-for-like sales in the UK and a 9% rise at its international business.