The are many online marketplaces worldwide, but only a few are of interest to western merchants, either because they are too small or the setup and management is too complicated. Self-service marketplaces are cheaper and easier to run than those requiring a local partner.<\/p>
Below is a (very) incomplete list of online marketplaces.<\/p>
With 11 million unique visitors to the site every month, Cdiscount is a major marketplace in France. It offers products in over 40 distinct categories, operates a fulfilment service and has a network of 18,500 pickup points. CDiscount was launched 1998 and is a household name among French shoppers. It is particularly well-known for electronics and tech products and is popular with tech-savvy shoppers looking for reasonable prices.<\/p>
Pros<\/strong>: Major marketplace in France and the second most popular after Amazon. Catalogue based system and so easy to list inventory against existing listings. Integrates with most major eCommerce platforms.<\/p> Cons<\/strong>: Back end is a bit clunky.<\/p> Fruugo is a UK marketplace that connects buyers with products from all over the world. It launched in 23 countries in 2013. One of its primary selling points is that it uses a single feed to give you access to multiple countries worldwide.<\/p> Fruugo\u2019s marketplace automatically translates listings to 15 different languages, which removes the need to list items on numerous localised versions of a marketplace. Payment is on a commission basis with no monthly fees. Fruugo has around 1.5 million customers worldwide and is growing quickly.<\/p> Pros<\/strong>: Easy to list products using a product feed. Great for international sales<\/p> Cons<\/strong>: Back end can be challenging to use.<\/p> OnBuy is a fast-growing UK based marketplace. It offers much lower fees than other marketplaces (5 to 9%) and has a presence in 51 countries. Payments are managed via PayPal.<\/p> Pros<\/strong>: Catalogue based system, which is easy to set up and integrates with most major eCommerce platforms. If you do not hit \u00a3500 in sales in a month, your subscription fee is refunded.<\/p> Cons:<\/strong> Small by comparison with the other marketplaces mentioned here.<\/p> Bol.com is an online marketplace and store serving consumers in the Netherlands and Belgium. It operates in a comparable way to Amazon. It sells directly to consumers but also offers its platform as a marketplace where other online retailers can list products. Bol is based in the Netherlands and has a turnover of more than \u20ac1 billion.<\/p> Pros<\/strong>: the market leader in the Netherlands, one of Europe\u2019s largest economies. Catalogue based system which makes product listing easy.<\/p> Cons<\/strong>: Picky about the sellers they accept. Rigorous performance metrics. Product creation process involved.<\/p> Alibaba, the Chinese eCommerce colossus, runs three enormous online marketplaces. Tmall is the domestic business-to-consumer marketplace, Tmall Global is for international brands and Taobao a consumer-to-consumer eCommerce site. These marketplaces process a staggering number of transactions and boast a billion monthly users.<\/p> Selling on Tmall as a foreign company is complex and out of reach of small to mid-sized retailers. To sell on the platform requires the following:<\/p> Also, shipping into China is complicated and requires the use of a specialist courier to ensure deliverability. Listing and customer service must also be localized into Chinese.<\/p> Pros:<\/strong> Enormous marketplace.<\/p> Cons:<\/strong> Challenging for small retailers to get started. Only interested in international brands.<\/p> Rakuten is the biggest eCommerce site in Japan, with Amazon Japan a close second. Products are sold at a fixed price. Unlike Amazon, it is a pure marketplace and does not sell products.<\/p> To sell on Rakuten requires a local partner’s services, and both customer service and product listing are in Japanese.<\/p>Fruugo<\/h2>
OnBuy.com<\/h2>
Bol.com<\/h2>
Tmall and Taobao<\/h2>
Rakuten<\/h2>