There for You – Around the Globe and Right Next Door

With its recent purchase of German company Besser Betreut GmbH, Europe’s largest online destination for care and service providers, Care.com has helped make the world a little smaller. This multinational online community now speaks not only “childcare” but “Kinderbetreuung,” and will now serve over 7 million users internationally. (Full details on the acquisition are available on Bloomberg News.)

As the Care.com community continues to grow, families around the world will be able to quickly locate childcare, eldercare, pet care, housekeeping, tutoring services, and many other care-related offerings, as well as a wealth of care-focused resources and advice, through Care.com’s user-friendly interface. And most importantly, Care.com does the safety work–conducting background checks, recording references, and publishing an online safety guide.

In joining forces with Betreut, a multinational firm that serves families in more than 15 countries, Care.com will continue to enhance its offerings and services stateside while benefiting from the global presence Besser contributes to its brand.

This deal is notable because as the world continues to become more and more flat, web-based companies like Care.com will continue to benefit from global resources for local delivery. We can see this, as well, with Amazon local and other sites that can leverage the global benefits of IT for highly personalized, local transactions.