News roundup--Mobile Fun, Wilkinson, more

Following the success of its European expansion and increasing orders from non-European territories, Mobile Fun has launched its first website outside the European market. The Mobile Fun US site, managed by Blake Scott, will sell products from its extensive range of 7,000 globally-sourced mobile accessories and devices. Richard Moore, Mobile Fun’s head of international says the US site is just one in a string of planned launches. Mobile Fun is currently setting up an office on the US east coast and recruiting an on-the-ground team. It is also planning to launch in Australia, Canada, India, Brazil and Ireland in the coming months.

Despite revealing a profit decline of 62 percent to £22.7 million, general merchandiser Wilkinson is opening 10 new stores and creating 1,000 new jobs across the UK this year. The Mirror reports that the store will bear the moniker Wilko, which will be rolled out to the rest of the business. In the year ended February 2012, sales inched up to £1.56 billion.

Cygnus Books, a mail order and online seller of books on wellbeing and natural healing, is planning to expand its business into European markets including Germany and the Netherlands. The company currently despatches worldwide but accepts only cheques in sterling, postal orders or credit and debit cards as payments. To help facilitate its expansion, Cygnus has chosen Computop for its payment processing services. The contract will allow Cygnus to accept alternative payment methods including PayPal, iDEAL and Giropay.