How Karhu Cut
Customer Service Response Times
in the US and Europe

The Challenge: Strong Growth, Small Team

Karhu, Finnish for "bear", has been a name in running since 1916 and dominated the running tracks for decades. Today it is also a lifestyle sneaker brand, sold worldwide through resellers and its own direct-to-consumer webshop. Online customers should get the same experience they would get in a store.

Online sales were already growing strongly, but Karhu runs with a small organization. It did not have the people to keep service levels where they needed to be. Outsourcing customer service was not a nice-to-have, it was necessary.

The Approach: Native Teams Where It Matters, One Team for the Rest

Karhu outsourced all of its B2C customer service to Salesupply's fashion customer service team. Agents handle every request that comes in by email and phone. Connecting the systems and training the team both went fast and without problems.

The setup follows the business. The biggest markets get native teams: the US, Germany, Finland and the Netherlands. Every other market has a local phone number, answered by a central Salesupply team in English. Customers everywhere reach Karhu locally, without a native team in every country.

Response Times: A Bigger, Dedicated Team

It was clear from the start that Karhu needed a bigger, dedicated customer care team than it could build itself. With Salesupply's agents in place, response times dropped drastically, while the tone stayed correct and customer friendly.

Continuous Improvement: Service Insights Feed the Business

Karhu has put a renewed, organization-wide focus on the customer experience, including a rebuilt website at karhu.com. What customers tell the service team plays a central role in that. Karhu and Salesupply regularly brainstorm on how to feed those insights back into the business, turning customer service into a cycle of continuous improvement.

The Result: Faster Service, Built to Scale

• Drastically shorter response timesA bigger, dedicated team, still on brand and customer friendly.
• Native service in 4 marketsThe US, Germany, Finland and the Netherlands.
• Every other market coveredLocal phone numbers, answered by one central team in English.
• Insights that improve the businessService data feeds regular improvement sessions with Karhu.