Selling through online marketplaces offers enormous opportunities for brands and retailers – especially in cross-border commerce. But anyone wanting to sell internationally must deal intensively with one topic: VAT. And it’s a tricky one. Despite EU-wide rules, the reality remains complex. Different VAT rates, national exemptions, and ever-changing regulations make VAT one of the biggest stumbling blocks in European e-commerce....
With an estimated GMV of around 5.6 billion USD and over 1.6 billion USD in revenue in 2025 alone, bol represents the dominant marketplace model in the region. But which product segments are performing well? Where do assortment gaps exist? And what should new sellers focus on? The following insights into Categories and Assortments: What’s Working on bol provide guidance.
After two difficult years, the German online market grew again in 2025 for the first time, according to the HDE Online Monitor.
eBay is a generalistic marketplace, active and relevant in every category – but it is a true giant for car parts: Currently, around 700 million vehicle parts are available on eBay globally. According to the company, eBay is the number one platform for automotive parts and accessories in both the UK and Germany. And eBay is continuing to push the...
The Swiss e-commerce market offers highly attractive conditions for international sellers. But selling to Switzerland comes with specific rules - simply because Switzerland is not an EU member state and has three language regions. This results in special circumstances with regard to taxes, customs duties, and customer service.
It almost sounds like the beginning of a bad joke: "Two clueless people meet…" - but in reality, this is often the unfortunate situation when tax advisors and auditors at the tax office are faced with the tax returns of marketplace sellers. Things can get especially dire when cross-border revenues are involved. We asked Roger Grothmann in an interview what...
Marketplaces are a popular choice for many retailers and brands looking to expand into international markets. Wiltec, a specialist retailer in DIY, garden, and pet supplies, leverages several platforms for its cross-border commerce strategy – including Kaufland Global Marketplace. This best practice showcases how Wiltec scales internationally with Kaufland.
Profitability has been one of the most important topics for brands and retailers over the past 12 months – and it will continue to be a key focus. Selling on marketplaces, however, often makes it tricky to understand what actually remains at the end of the day. When brands operate across multiple platforms, they need reliable and comparable data to...
Around 247 billion euros - that is the total gross merchandise value that sellers will generate through marketplaces in cross-border European trade in 2025, according to a forecast by CB Commerce. It's no wonder that many brands and retailers are looking for new marketplaces to sell to abroad. And the range is constantly growing because many marketplace providers are expanding...
Marketplace Country Quadrants : Surprising Leaders, Missed Opportunities & Local Champions Which country tops the chart in online spend per capita?Where is Amazon not the dominant player?And is Shein really the biggest fashion marketplace in Spain? In her keynote at E-Commerce Berlin Expo 2025, Marketplace Universe co-founder Valerie Dichtl revealed surprising truths and untapped opportunities in the evolving European marketplace...
How Europe’s online pharmacy market is shifting—platforms, retail media, OTC growth & what brands should watch now.
Zalando Deep Dive into the 2024 results: Marketplace growth, B2B challenges & the About You acquisition. Is it truly becoming a platform?
Almost half of all online shoppers now start their shopping journey on marketplaces, and the majority also prefer to shop on marketplaces rather than in brand web shops. However, purchasing behavior varies considerably depending on the user group, product, or country. This means that how customers shop is a crucial success factor in e-commerce: Only those who know which customers...
The interest in and thus the market for professionally refurbished electronic and electrical appliances is growing and growing. This means that suppliers of refurbished products are finding more and more platforms through which they can sell their goods. MediaMarktSaturn started this four years ago and is now massively pushing the refurbished business.
Within a year, the Danish supplier of men's accessories had launched on five marketplaces in eight countries. For its entry into the marketplace business, Trendhim chose bol, the Dutch market leader. Reason enough to take a look at the best practise of Trendhim's start at bol.
If you want to sell via marketplaces in the Netherlands and Belgium, there is no getting around the top dog, bol. But Amazon also wants a piece of the action and is trying to expand its position. It therefore makes sense for sellers to take a closer look at the similarities and differences between the two platforms – for example,...
No marketplace business without logistics. When more and more customers are complaining or leaving negative comments, when delivery times can no longer be met, storage space is running out or costs are spiraling out of control? So what do you do when logistics go awry, how can a smooth change be ensured?
Thanks to the EU: European REach of Online Giants Become Transparent The European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA) has introduced a new era of transparency for online platforms, requiring those with over 75 million active monthly users in the EU to disclose their user figures twice a year, broken down by country. This data reveals fascinating insights into the online...
Fashion Bombshell: Why Zalando acquires About You by Ingrid Lommer Zalando, Europe’s largest online fashion retailer, has announced its acquisition of competitor About You, marking a major shakeup in the European fashion e-commerce and marketplace industry. The deal, valued at €1.13 billion, includes a purchase price of €6.50 per About You share—a 107% premium on the stock’s three-month average price....
Internationalization in 28 markets and within just a few months? That sounds utopian, but it is feasible. The Fulda-based lighting specialist Lampenwelt has proven this with its internationalization.
Why “Pre-loved” gets a lot of love this season Secondhand Christmas gifting is no longer a niche activity—it’s becoming a significant part of holiday shopping around the world. Driven by shifts in consumer attitudes, economic factors, and the growing focus on sustainability, the market for pre-loved goods is seeing strong growth. Platforms like eBay, Vinted, and Back Market are leading...
What does the marketplace landscape look like in Central and Eastern Europe? Allegro, Heureka, eMAG and Skroutz are strong generalists in the CEE markets. In addition, there are other important players in each country.
Why Internationalization Has Been the Key Growth Factor in 2024 One of Marketplace Universe’s key predictions for marketplace business development in 2023 and 2024 was clear: internationalization would drive growth, even in a challenging economic environment. Now, as we review the first set of available data, we can say confidently: our predictions were spot-on. While e-commerce markets across Western Europe...
eBay's Free C2C Strategy: How a bold move in Germany boosted private sales and expanded to the UK. Insights from eBay's leadership.
Western Brands Unknowingly Flood Shein: A New FrontieR in Unauthorized Sales by Ingrid Lommer Western luxury and sports brands are facing an unexpected dilemma as their products appear on Shein, the fast-fashion giant known for low prices and questionable sourcing. The likes of Adidas, Puma, Nike, Ray-Ban, and Calvin Klein are being sold on the Chinese platform—at deep discounts and...
Major Innovations in AI, Social Commerce, and Supply Chain Every year, Amazon Accelerate sets the stage for the latest trends and innovations for the Amazon landscape, and 2024 was no exception. Held in Seattle, the event draws sellers and business leaders eager to learn how Amazon’s new tools can help them succeed in a rapidly changing retail environment. This year,...
Amazon’s big vendor clean up Many brands selling on Amazon are finding a nasty surprise in their inboxes these days: termination notices from the e-commerce giant, signaling an abrupt end to long-standing vendor relationships. Amazon’s email to affected brands reads, “We’ve made the decision to stop sourcing products from your company as part of our regular review of product offerings,...
Retail Media is the fastest growing advertising channel worldwide at the moment – and online-marketplaces are profiting strongly from this new trend. Marketplace Universe spoke with Retail Media expert Thomas Philip-Bashar, Product manager at eCommerce solution provider Channable, about current trends in this highly dynamic field. Thomas, why is Retail Media advertising so attractive for marketeers at the moment, especially...
German premium fashion retail chain and marketplace provider Breuninger is on sale. Several international competitors are interested.
This has been a long time coming: In March, Temu first invited sellers to their US platform, moving slightly away from their factory-to-consumer model to tentativley open towards a more traditional marketplace model. From then on, US based sellers can list their products on Temu, sending orders from their own warehouses. Now, Temu has brought this new approach to Europe.
A comparison of Amazon, Zalando and About You: The three major B2C marketplaces are characterized by their different approaches and scales. Understanding these differences is essential for any seller considering where to allocate their marketplace efforts.
Amazon also has an outstanding position for local e-commerce in Germany, other Western and Central European countries. But things look different in other nations. That's why an internationalization with Amazon is sometimes not enough.
Looking back on the 2023/2024 financial year, it is clear that even industry leaders such as Zalando and About You were not immune to the general economic challenges that shook online retail. Both companies reported slight declines in sales, but showed a strategic focus on healthy growth. Profitability at Zalando and AboutYou is a necessity in today's competitive environment.
No new form of advertising has grown so quickly in the last 20 years: this year, global spending on retail media is likely to increase by 20 percent. The ongoing conflict between advertisers' demands for detailed data and marketplaces' control over it highlights the tensions in this rapidly evolving industry, signaling that retail media's impact is still unfolding.
54% of German e-commerce sales were generated via online marketplaces in 2023 - according to the HDE in the new edition of its Online Monitor 2024. The overview of sales shares by channel simply shows at a glance, how incredibly dominant Amazon is in German e-commerce and how difficult it is to do without online marketplaces in the sales mix.
Eastern Europe is emerging as a critical growth market for e-commerce, driven by the stagnation in Western Europe and Germany's recession. Challenges such as language barriers, logistics complexities, and price sensitivity can be solved, double-digit growth rates beckon.
What news: Shemu now has over 180 million monthly users in the EU.What's the story behind the rise of Shemu - our new term for the succesful Chinese players Shein and Temu.
Platform Building: Online as quickly as possible or step by step? BILD launched its marketplace within 11 weeks, but the speed has left its mark. Others such as Hornbach or Popken Fashion are taking much longer. The question of which is better was discussed by the panel at the Mirakle Platform Summit.
Zalando's marketplace strategy: The annual figures for 2023 reveal a lot about the strategy for the Berlin-based company's marketplace business. We therefore take a critical look at the figures, the most striking changes and the targets that Zalando has now set for the future.
Despite the success of the marketplace, which has recorded double-digit growth and achieved a GMV of over 2 billion euros, the traditional retail business is suffering from declining sales. The departure of marketplace boss Bodo Kipper suggests different views on the strategic direction.
Mädchenflohmarkt, a secondhand fashion platform, declared bankruptcy last summer after over 15 years in business. Christian Wegner, the ex-founder of Momox, stepped in as an investor with plans to streamline operations and open the platform to B2C sellers. His goal is to transform Mädchenflohmarkt into a profitable company by tightening logistics processes and expanding revenue streams.
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