OpenAI stops Agentic Commerce
Just five months after entering Agentic Commerce with its Instant Checkout, OpenAI is already pulling the plug. It appears that while users research products via ChatGPT, they do not use the bot to complete purchases. However, OpenAI may be giving up too quickly: changing established user behaviour requires persistence – and, of course, the necessary investments. Read the full story on LinkedIn

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Amazon Haul grows quickly in the discount segment
Less than 15 months after launch, Amazon’s discount format Haul is gaining significant momentum in the US market. Haul has now reached 3,287 active sellers – an important milestone for further scaling. The offer focuses on ultra-cheap direct imports from China priced below $20, putting it in direct competition with platforms such as Temu and Shein. Read more on Retail News

Amazon launches Seller Wallet in Europe
Amazon is now rolling out its Seller Wallet in Europe. The tool is available across seven marketplaces: Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Poland. It and aims to give sellers more control over their earnings and currency conversions. See more on Ecommercenews

Amazon tests AI tool for marketplace sellers
Amazon is introducing Canvas, a new AI-powered analytics interface in Seller Central, initially in the US and the UK. The tool helps sellers analyse performance data and identify growth opportunities. Additional countries, including Germany, are expected to follow in the second half of 2026. Find out more on Digital Commerce 360 

Back Market reaches $3.5 billion GMV
The refurbished marketplace Back Market generated more than $3.5 billion in global gross merchandise value in 2025, representing 32% year-over-year growth. Germany performed particularly strongly, with traded volume increasing by 58%. Read more on Ecommercenews

Refurbed expands to 13 additional European countries
The refurbished marketplace Refurbed has surpassed €3 billion in GMV and is now launching a major expansion across Europe. With entry into 13 new markets – including the UK, France, Spain and Poland – the platform will operate in 24 countries and reach around 486 million potential customers. See more on Cross-Border Magazine 

Redcare Pharmacy disappoints with weak outlook
Online pharmacy Redcare Pharmacy has missed investor expectations with its outlook for 2026. The company expects significantly slower growth and has lowered its margin targets. Industry observers point to a cooling OTC business and a generally more cautious growth trajectory. Read more on Investing 

Fashion Collaboration News

About You and ProSiebenSat.1 launch fashion brand Everly
Online fashion retailer About You and media group ProSiebenSat.1 have jointly launched the new fashion brand Everly. The first collection of versatile basics is available exclusively via the About You platform and will be promoted through ProSiebenSat.1’s TV reach as well as social media. The project combines fashion development, distribution and marketing in an integrated media commerce model. Find out more on AboutYou

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Der Beitrag Marketplace Universe News 09.03.2026 – OpenAI halts Agentic Commerce / Amazon Haul grows rapidly / Refurbished on the rise erschien zuerst auf Marketplace Universe.

1. Agentic Commerce: The War for User Choice (Perplexity vs. Amazon)

In 2025, AI agents became transactional. While OpenAI’s deep integrations with Shopify and Stripe created a seamless “Headless Commerce” backend, the year ended in a legal showdown. In November 2025, Amazon sued Perplexity, alleging that its “Comet” shopping bots were covertly accessing accounts and bypassing security to automate purchases. Perplexity countered, framing the lawsuit as a threat to “user choice” and the right to have an AI assistant.

• The Bigger Picture: We are seeing the first major conflict between “Closed Gardens” (Amazon) and “Open Agents” (Perplexity). The battle is over who owns the customer relationship: the platform or the AI agent.
• 2026 Impact: Success in 2026 will depend on your “Product Knowledge Graph.” Brands must decide whether to optimize for platform-specific AI (like Amazon’s Rufus) or universal agents that may soon be legally restricted.

2. The Regulatory Wall: The End of “Tax-Free” Imports

The dominance of Temu and Shein met its match in EU regulation. In December 2025, the EU finalized a €3 flat-rate custom duty on all small parcels from non-EU countries, effective July 1st, 2026. This complements the French Anti-Fast Fashion Law (passed June 2025), which introduces a €5 eco-tax per item and a total ban on fast-fashion influencer marketing starting January 1st, 2026.

• The Bigger Picture: The “Wild West” of tax-free, direct-from-China shipping is officially ending. The EU is re-asserting sovereignty to protect local, compliant competition.
• 2026 Impact: Domestic sellers will see a “fairness dividend.” As the €3 fee and €5 eco-tax narrow the price gap, delivery speed and local compliance will replace “absolute lowest price” as the key conversion drivers for 2026.

3. The TikTok Shop Invasion: Polarized Realities & Hard Data

The 2025 rollout of TikTok Shop in Central Europe (DE, FR, IT) moved past the hype and into hard data. In France alone, the platform generated €53 million in October 2025 with over 35,000 active shops. However, the experience was highly polarized. While brands like Blissim saw record engagement, About You pulled its integration just four weeks after the June launch, citing a mismatch between the platform’s high operational intensity and their existing fulfillment structures.

• The Bigger Picture: TikTok is successfully attacking Amazon’s convenience moat with “Fulfilled by TikTok,” but it requires a fundamental shift in seller DNA – from static listings to high-frequency content creation.
• 2026 Impact: “Discovery-led Commerce” is now a primary consumer habit. In 2026, the gap will widen between “content-ready” brands and traditional retailers who fail to entertain.

4. The Internationalization Paradox: Expansion vs. Retreat

2025 saw a massive wave of cross-border growth. OnBuy expanded into 12 European countries in September, and B&Q (Kingfisher) made a surprise move in November 2025 by opening its UK marketplace to German sellers, offering a specialized “Cross-Border Turbo” for DIY brands. The consolidation of the European fashion market was finalized on November 6th, 2025, with the legal squeeze-out of About You by Zalando. Conversely, the year proved that scale isn’t everything: Wayfair completed its exit from the German market in January 2025 to focus on profitability in its core strongholds.

• The Bigger Picture: Internationalization is no longer about geographic “land grabs” but about “unified scale.” Platforms are either going all-in on a pan-European model or retreating to core markets.
• 2026 Impact: For sellers, the “barrier to entry” for cross-border trade has dropped, but the competition is now truly global and focused on localized excellence.

5. Platform Consolidation: Quality over Quantity

The consolidation wasn’t just corporate, but also internal. Amazon’s “Project Bend the Curve” led to the removal of billions of low-quality or inactive listings to save on massive AWS infrastructure costs. Simultaneously, platforms like Otto increased seller fees to prioritize high-volume, professional partners over low-margin churn.

• The Bigger Picture: 2025 was the year marketplaces stopped chasing “infinite shelf space” and started prioritizing “curated quality.” They are cleaning up their databases to reduce the “noise” for both customers and AI crawlers.
• 2026 Impact: Marketplace SEO is shifting. It’s no longer about keyword volume but about performance health, returns ratios, and delivery reliability.

6. Circular Economy 2.0: Re-Commerce as a Standard

Sustainability has moved from a marketing claim to a business pillar. Vinted became a dominant force in the broader retail conversation, while Kaufland and Back Market launched integrated “Second Life” programs, allowing customers to trade in electronics and appliances directly on the platform.

• The Bigger Picture: “Circular as a Service” is becoming a standard marketplace feature. Consumers now expect a “sell back” button next to the “buy” button.
• 2026 Impact: Brands must develop a “Second Life” strategy. In 2026, marketplaces will likely reward (or require) products that are certified as repairable or part of a formal buy-back program.

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Der Beitrag 2025 Marketplace Year in Review: The Great Re-Architecture erschien zuerst auf Marketplace Universe.

Refurbished boom: Back Market, Swappie & Co. hit new growth records
Europe’s refurbished electronics market is surging – and 2024 was a banner year for the sector’s leading players. Back Market increased its GMV by 32% to €2.2 billion, consolidating its lead in the European market. Swappie, the Finnish specialist for refurbished iPhones, grew its revenue by 20% to €249 million. German competitor Asgoodasnew expects 12% growth to €152 million for the year. Germany is developing into one of the most mature markets. Full article on Exciting Commerce (German) 

More News

Amazon launches AI-generated video ads for sellers
Amazon Ads’ Video Generator – previously in beta – is now free for all U.S. sellers. The tool creates product-centric video ads using generative AI in seconds. Details via The Verge 

Amazon’s ad revenue in Germany outpaces overall growth
In 2024, Amazon generated €3.62 billion in ad revenue in Germany – a 23.6% increase, far outstripping its 8.7% retail growth. The platform continues to monetize its reach more effectively than competitors. Full story via Ecommerce News 

AliExpress expands EU-based fulfilment
With its new “Local+” service, AliExpress offers shipping from European warehouses – a strategic shift prompted by rising tariffs and the need for faster delivery. The move positions the Chinese giant as a serious fulfilment partner for EU sellers. Read more on Ecommerce News

eBay Live launches in the UK
eBay has officially launched its livestream shopping platform in the UK – marking its first rollout in Europe after debuting in the U.S. The format allows real-time shopping during live events hosted by influencers and sellers. Meanwhile, eBay is running a nationwide live shopping tour across the U.S. to boost awareness. ChannelX(start in UK)  Retail Dive (tour in the US) 

TikTok Shop introduces seller fee and expands co-funded promos
From July 15, TikTok will charge UK sellers £0.50 per order for packages fulfilled under the “Shipped by Seller” model. Fulfilled-by-TikTok and platform-shipped orders remain unaffected. The platform is also investing more in co-funded promotions. Read more on ChannelX 

eBay Germany offers free business coaching to SMB sellers
eBay is now providing free, personalized coaching to German SMB sellers making under €100,000 annually. The sessions cover listing best practices, ads, and cross-border expansion – aiming to help smaller sellers scale.  Press release (German) 

Pre-loved Fahsion News

Vinted overtakes Amazon in France – Zalando calls for shared sustainability efforts
Pre-loved fashion is having a moment. Vinted, Europe’s biggest secondhand fashion marketplace, is now the top-grossing fashion platform in France – ahead of Amazon, Shein, and Temu. The platform’s rise highlights shifting consumer behavior, but also surfaces challenges like fraud and lack of product filtering. Meanwhile, Zalando is addressing sustainability at a systemic level. In its new report “It Takes Many,” the fashion platform calls on brands, governments, and influencers to drive the industry’s green transformation. Vinted analysis via WiWo (German)  Zalando sustainability study (German)

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Der Beitrag Marketplace Universe News 16.06.2025 – Second hand is booming / Strong Amazon advertising business / eBay Live launch in Uk erschien zuerst auf Marketplace Universe.

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 this transformation. Or, as eBay Germany’s Managing Director Saskia Meier-Andrae, recently put it in an interview with Marketplace Universe: “The stigma around secondhand is gone. Today, pre-loved is sexy.”

The Global Growth of Secondhand Gifting

Across the U.S., UK, and Germany, secondhand purchases are emerging as a defining feature of the 2024 holiday shopping season.

In the United States, a recent study by OfferUp shows that 68% of shoppers plan to allocate part of their gift budget to secondhand items, with Gen Z leading the charge at 83%. Electronics, sporting goods, and furniture are among the top categories. Nearly three-quarters of U.S. consumers (74%) believe secondhand gifting is more accepted this year, reflecting broader cultural shifts.

In the UK, the new “Recommerce Report” estimates that £2 billion will be spent on secondhand gifts this year, representing 10% of all festive purchases. Books, toys, and board games rank among the most popular choices. Many UK consumers value the uniqueness of pre-loved items, with 73% saying they would consider buying secondhand if they found something truly distinctive.

Germany mirrors these trends. Research from ECC Köln and eBay Germany reveals that 35% of German shoppers plan to give secondhand gifts this year, an increase from 29% in 2023. Among 18- to 29-year-olds, the figure rises to 56%, with affordability and quality emerging as top priorities.

Why Secondhand Appeals to Shoppers

The rising interest in secondhand gifts is linked to several key factors:

• Affordability: In Germany, 69% of consumers cited cost savings as a primary reason for choosing secondhand, while 48% of U.S. shoppers value the better price points of pre-loved goods.
• Uniqueness: Secondhand platforms often offer items that are difficult to find in traditional retail settings. In the UK, 73% of respondents in Vinted’s survey said they value the individuality of secondhand gifts.
• Sustainability: The environmental impact of secondhand shopping resonates strongly with many consumers. Nearly 60% of UK shoppers and 29% of Germans said sustainability was an important factor in their decision to buy pre-loved items.

Marketplaces at the Forefront of the Trend

The secondhand Christmas boom wouldn’t be possible without the platforms facilitating it.

eBay remains a dominant force in Europe, with a GMV of $30 billion in 2023, according to data from the E-Commerce Database (ECDB). The platform’s established reputation makes it a popular choice for shoppers seeking everything from vintage fashion to electronics.

Meanwhile, Vinted is rapidly gaining ground. With its global GMV projected to reach $11.1 billion in 2024, the peer-to-peer platform is especially popular in markets like the UK and Germany. Its focus on ease of use and affordability appeals to younger, budget-conscious consumers.

Specialized platforms are also playing a key role. Fashion-focused sites like Vestiaire Collective and Depop cater to niche audiences, while electronics marketplaces such as Back Market and Refurbed focus on professionally refurbished goods. In Germany, ECC Köln’s study highlights a growing trend toward professionalization, with 38% of retailers now specializing in refurbished products.

What Does Secondhand Mean for Peak Season?

Secondhand Christmas gifting is clearly gaining momentum, but its impact on traditional holiday shopping is still evolving. The customers are starting to own the trend (especially younger shoppers). But retailers and brands are still struggling with finding the right strategy for the pre-owned market. Until they found it, the secondhand turnover will fall to specialist players who have mastered a profitable second hand business.

Der Beitrag SecondHand Christmas erschien zuerst auf Marketplace Universe.