Multi-vendor e-commerce marketplaces have rapidly emerged as one of the fastest-growing sales channels for fashion brands. And integrating them successfully into your omnichannel strategy can significantly boost brand awareness, especially in international markets. But with many logistical, administrative and technological factors to manage, it’s key to conduct thorough research before making your marketplace debut.
In this exclusive Beyond Threads webinar, Erik Janssen Steenberg, Business Development and Innovation Manager at Bleckmann, shares valuable insights into the opportunities and challenges of launching your brand on e-commerce marketplaces.
What are the benefits of e-commerce marketplaces for fashion brands?
E-commerce marketplaces such as Zalando, About You, Selfridges and Saks Fifth Avenue are multi-vendor online platforms that allow fashion brands to reach a much wider audience than they could on their own. Incorporating marketplaces into your omnichannel strategy can therefore bring several benefits to ambitious fashion brands.
One major advantage is the ease of expansion for fashion brands into new regions and markets. “With just a few strategic adjustments, brands can enter new countries and grow their customer base with minimal effort,” explains Erik. “In addition, with millions of visitors per day, these platforms offer valuable, brand-safe exposure for your brand.”
Brands also retain greater control over inventory and sales data; unlike traditional wholesale models, selling directly through marketplaces enables detailed insights into customer behaviour and purchasing patterns. Adding marketplaces to an omnichannel model can also enhance the customer experience by creating a seamless shopping journey across multiple touchpoints and attracting customers to brand-owned channels.
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Top tips for success on e-commerce marketplaces
E-commerce marketplaces certainly offer brands an excellent opportunity to reach new customers and drive sales – but onboarding and managing these platforms can come with challenges. “Brands need to consider the complexity of operating across multiple channels,” explains Erik. “Managing various marketplace platforms alongside your own online store and physical retail locations demands significant operational effort.”
In addition, brands often face technical challenges when integrating systems and synchronising data across multiple platforms. Each marketplace operates differently, and aligning systems can be complex. It’s also important to account for marketplace fees and regulatory requirements, as every platform has its own policies, commission rates and compliance rules. Careful financial planning and a clear understanding of the regulations are essential to protect margins and ensure long-term profitability.
Finally, it’s essential that your brand has a strong identity on whichever marketplace you choose. “Consistent and compelling messaging is key to helping you to stand out on these competitive platforms,” adds Erik. “And don’t forget that your pricing should be aligned with all your other channels to avoid a situation where shoppers are getting a better or worse deal by shopping through a marketplace. These platforms are a great ‘shop window’ and can help turn curious browsers into long-term brand fans.”
How can e-commerce marketplaces drive your brand’s growth?
With access to millions of potential customers to enable greater brand visibility, marketplaces offer brands a powerful platform for expansion. And while onboarding and managing marketplace operations can be complex, Erik emphasises that these platforms are an essential part of the modern retail landscape.
“Marketplaces are here to stay – and for fashion brands, they represent a significant opportunity to drive growth and reach new audiences,” he concludes. “By embracing flexibility and scalability, and partnering with the right technology and logistics experts, brands can unlock new revenue streams and deliver a seamless customer experience.”
Want to find out more about the benefits of marketplaces for your brand? Press play on the latest Beyond Threads webinar now, or get in contact for a free consultation with one of our experts!
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Transcript
Erik (Host):
Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of the Blackmon Beyond Threats webinar series. My name is Erik Janssen Steenberg, and I’m a Business Development & Innovation Manager at Bleckmann. In my role, I talk to customers, partners, suppliers, and industry bodies to make sure we early scope and then early adapt to changes in the market, technological advancements, and the ever-changing requirements and expectations of our customers.
I’m really excited to have you here today. We will be talking about marketplaces in an omnichannel environment—why marketplaces are taking the market by storm, and what it will take from you as a brand, company, or team to be successful in these marketplaces. What should you be mindful of, what is part of the overall setup, and what do you need to invest in to become proficient or educated, given how new this space is?
Marketplaces in an omnichannel context are digital platforms where multiple brands can sell their products and run marketing activities. This means a lot of foot traffic and visibility on household-name platforms, which can drive people to your products. At the same time, customers can also see your competitors’ products, so there are large pros but also some cons.
The most important benefit of a marketplace is the foot traffic. These platforms generate traffic that you wouldn’t normally be able to attract yourself.
Other key differentiators of marketplaces are that they operate as aggregators, with many brands selling similar products on the same platform. This creates a competitive environment, unlike your own channels where you set pricing, discounts, and control the competitive landscape.
When implemented correctly and efficiently as part of your overall setup, marketplaces provide multiple benefits.
First, the most important benefit is, again, foot traffic. Working on a marketplace allows you to reach an audience that you wouldn’t normally reach through your own channels.
Second, marketplaces allow you to expand into new regions and markets. For example, on Zalando, you can sell in Germany and quickly start selling in the Netherlands or Belgium.
Third, marketplaces increase brand visibility and overall customer reach. They generate interest in your brand and products that you might not achieve through your own website and sales channels alone.
Fourth, marketplaces give greater control over data concerning orders and inventory. In traditional B2B environments, data wasn’t shared—you sold bulk volumes, but had little insight into who the consumers were. Marketplaces provide better visibility to pinpoint marketing activities and budget allocation.
Fifth, marketplaces enhance the customer experience across omnichannel solutions. They offer a unified experience across mobile, desktop, social media, and even in-store kiosks, allowing customers to switch channels effortlessly while keeping carts and preferences synchronized.
Finally, marketplaces can streamline order management and fulfillment if you allow the platform to manage this aspect.
However, to gain all these benefits, you must navigate challenges and make decisions about fundamental aspects of your company. These include:
Platform fees: Marketplaces charge significant percentages over your GMV, reflecting their value.
Pricing and competition management: You must actively manage pricing and competitive strategies, including dynamic pricing adjustments.
Data integration and consistency: Multiple data sources may be siloed; you need real-time synchronization and unified reporting.
Data security and privacy compliance
Inventory and order management: Visibility and control must be actively maintained across channels.
Consistent brand and customer experience: Products must look, feel, and be priced consistently across platforms.
Operational cost and resource allocation: Managing multiple partners and flows increases operational complexity.
Compliance management: Each marketplace has its own regulations; you must adhere to them across regions and markets.
Marketing and channel-specific strategies: Marketing efforts must be tailored per channel, with cross-channel attribution.
Technology and platform dependencies: Platform changes require updates to integrations, mappings, and data.
Performance metrics and analytics: Data is fragmented; KPIs can differ across channels, making interpretation challenging.
Overall, marketplaces can drive enormous boosts in sales and brand awareness, but they require substantial investment, education, and active management of partners, suppliers, and internal teams. They are a different animal, but they are here to stay and are a vital part of your omnichannel strategy.
As we conclude, remember: no one wakes up saying, “I want to learn supply chain management.” When confronted with all the investments, learning, and management required, keep in mind that companies like Blackmon have done this many times. Reach out to benefit from our experience and expertise.
My conclusion is that before investing in additional sales channels like marketplaces, you first need the right partnerships. If you want to dive deeper or continue the conversation, feel free to contact me or my colleagues at Blackmon through social channels or email.
Thank you again for watching today. This was Erik Janssen Steenberg with the Blackmon Beyond Threats webinar. See you soon.
