Marketplace Sales--Priorities and Challenges

Sept. 30, 2023

by Fareeha Ali

SOMERVILLE, MA – To thrive in today’s eCommerce market, more businesses are selling on marketplaces. In 2022, 31% more retailers and brands started selling on marketplaces for the first time—and they’re not just selling on Amazon.

For more seasoned sellers, the opportunity is still growing: 53% of companies now sell on more marketplaces than a year ago, and 62% have plans to expand further in the upcoming year. This is driven by, and fueling, the growth of marketplace and dropship platforms, which saw a significant 38% year over year growth in 2022 – six times faster than all of eCommerce.

Mirakl conducted an in-depth analysis of the performance of 65,000 sellers, and surveyed 1,500 marketplace sellers of all sizes to learn about their eCommerce priorities and challenges.

Here are some key takeaways:

• 56% of these businesses sell on more than two marketplaces
• Companies are choosing to invest in marketplace sales as a strategy to acquire new customers, increase profitability, and boost brand visibility.
• Brands, once wary of marketplaces, now recognize the control and benefits they offer, and now represent more than half of sellers across Mirakl’s network of 350+ marketplaces.
• Expanding into new marketplaces can happen fast: the average seller on a Mirakl-powered marketplace goes from initial onboarding to first sale in just 23 days, with the fastest 25% happening in just 4 days.
• In 2022, the average seller made $146,016 in sales on each Mirakl marketplace or dropship platform.

Marketplace and dropship platforms consistently demonstrate growth that outperforms the broader eCommerce sector. This growth is led by a mix of brands, retailers, and dedicated marketplace sellers, emphasizing the importance and profitability of these platforms for modern eCommerce.

Read the full report here and learn more about the tactics successful sellers are using to accelerate marketplace growth.

Fareeha Ali is director of Strategy and Market Intelligence at Mirakl.