How Motherswork simplified its financial operations to grow with mums in Asia

Introducing Motherswork

When Sharon Wong, founder and CEO of Motherswork, first became a mother, she was struck by how hard it was to find quality products and trusted information for new mothers. The experience lit a spark. In 1998, she left her corporate career to launch Motherswork, with a mission to provide mothers with access to the right support, information, and products to raise their babies with confidence. 

Motherswork has since grown into Southeast Asia’s leading omnichannel destination for mothers and children, offering a premium shopping experience alongside the warmth of a supportive community of mothers. Beyond Singapore, the brand now operates in China and Vietnam, where a local-first strategy and speed to market were mission-critical to expansion.

However, crafting a country-specific strategy was only half the battle. Overseas expansion demands speed and agility – yet local operational hurdles were putting growth at risk. 

The challenge 

Balancing localisation with speed to market 

To succeed in new markets, speed alone wasn’t enough. Motherswork had to navigate complex local banking systems and offer payment methods shoppers preferred. With eCommerce at the centre of the brand’s omnichannel strategy, getting this right was essential.

Sharon Wong

Founder and CEO at Motherswork

"As we expanded, it became clear that localisation is a non-negotiable. Each market came with unique hurdles. We had to rethink everything, from our product mix to payment methods, while staying true to our premium positioning. That was when Airwallex stepped in and changed the game."

To get started quickly, Motherswork launched its Singapore eCommerce site using its existing payment gateway provider.

But as the brand expanded into new markets across China and Southeast Asia, the payment solution struggled to scale. High foreign transaction and currency conversion fees ate into margins, while the lack of local payment options made it harder to convert new customers.

Local banking presented further challenges. Opening corporate bank accounts in new markets meant navigating different regulations and lengthy application processes. 

The inefficiency didn’t stop there – cross-border transactions were often slow and required extensive paperwork. In Vietnam, for example, every overseas supplier payment needed detailed documentation, making it hard to move funds or manage cash flow with speed. On top of that, as transaction volumes grew, poor exchange rates and high SWIFT fees put further pressure on margins.

Traditional tools could only take the company so far. To achieve its ambitions, Motherswork needed a partner that could remove localisation barriers and unlock faster market entry.

The solution  

A fintech partner built for local complexity and global scale

For Motherswork, every limitation was a push to adapt. The brand looked for a partner that could help it scale globally while staying flexible to local market needs. It found an all-in-one solution in Airwallex.

 Local payment methods that convert 

As part of its localisation strategy, Motherswork needed to let customers pay using their preferred digital wallets or payment methods. But in key markets across Asia, its previous payment gateway only supported card payments and charged high transaction fees.

To address both issues, Motherswork launched Airwallex Checkout on its Shopify-powered site using Airwallex's native Shopify integration. This gave the team immediate access to a wider range of local payment methods, with lower transaction fees and no need for third-party plugins.

The result: Lower transaction fees, and higher conversion rates, as friction at checkout disappeared.

One solution for the full payment journey, from collection to payout 

Localising the business also meant rethinking how money moves behind the scenes. With Airwallex, Motherswork found a single solution for collecting payments, holding funds in multiple currencies, and paying global suppliers.

With Airwallex Global Accounts, Motherswork avoided the time and complexity of opening local bank accounts in every market. These Global Accounts come with local bank details, making it easy to collect customer payments in multiple currencies instantly – just like a local business. The team can then hold those funds in their original currencies and pay international suppliers directly using Airwallex Transfers. There’s no need to convert currencies, incur SWIFT fees, or navigate documentation-heavy local bank processes. Payments flow through Airwallex’s global network of local payment rails, with 95% of transfers arriving within the same day

As an added benefit, Airwallex’s Xero integration took the manual work out of accounting reconciliation. Customer and supplier payments now sync automatically, giving the finance team more time to focus on strategic initiatives.

Sharon Wong

Founder and CEO at Motherswork

"Airwallex has become the financial engine for our global growth, giving us the confidence to scale without having to juggle multiple platforms – just one solution that grows with us, so we can focus on growing the business."

The result

With Airwallex, Motherswork can adapt to each market’s banking and payment systems without the usual costs and complexity. As a result, the brand improved cost efficiency through: 

• Faster, lower-cost payouts: By using Airwallex’s local payment rails to bypass SWIFT fees, Motherswork saw its international transaction fees drop by an average of 23% in just three months.

• Reduced customer friction at checkout: Since switching to Airwallex Checkout, Motherswork has seen a 29% increase in overall conversion rate and 4% increase in average order value.

• Time saved on manual reconciliation: Airwallex's integration with Motherswork's Xero accounting software has automated the reconciliation process, saving the finance team hours of manual work.

Looking ahead, Motherswork is doubling down on its omnichannel strategy with new retail locations in Thailand and Malaysia, where it plans to use Airwallex POS terminals for in-store payments. ​​For eCommerce, the team is building on its success by rolling out Airwallex Checkout across both markets via its Shopify integration.

Motherswork is also exploring Airwallex Corporate Cards for smaller supplier payments and day-to-day expenses. With expense tracking and multi-currency support, the cards will become a valuable part of its global finance toolkit. 

For businesses with global ambitions, Sharon’s message is clear – just do it. “As Singaporean businesses, we need to look beyond our shores. Run fast, adapt quickly, and lean on your partners on the ground. With partners like Airwallex, we can focus on scaling across borders and doing what we do best – being a trusted partner for mothers everywhere.” 

This publication does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice from Airwallex, nor does it substitute seeking such advice, and makes no express or implied representations / warranties / guarantees regarding content accuracy, completeness, or currency. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [[email protected]]. Airwallex (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (201626561Z) is licensed as a Major Payment Institution and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.