Ankorstore: how B2B Marketplaces disrupt wholesalers and distributors

If investors’ valuations are a sign of the prospects of a company, then this European start up is expected to have a spectacular future! Investors have also entrusted €365 million to that purpose.

Faire, the American equivalent is currently valuated at $12.4 billion and was established only five years ago. B2B Marketplaces will revolutionize wholesaling and distributors’ business. Read how concepts like Ankorstore, will achieve it.

Small independent retailers have felt the squeeze of chains and online B2C marketplaces. In order to differentiate and strengthen their value proposition they offer brands which are unique and not widely traded online. To find such brands is not that easy. Up to now they had to rely on fairs and wholesalers/ distributors who represented them in their countries.

Similarly, for smaller newly created brands with a strong concept, international expansion was always very complicated because they had to identify and contact these distributors/ wholesalers who would agree to represent them in their markets.

How Ankorestore’s value proposition changed all that.

Ankorstore is a global marketplace dedicated exclusively to small businesses and independent brands. It helps the independents not to compete at the lowest possible price, but to lead special experiences for their customers who want original and authentic products. It also provides a new avenue to international growth to local, craft intensive, creative brands.

Its customer base are 200,000 retailers, florists, coffee-shops and other concept-stores across Europe and its suppliers are 15,000 brands which offer 1 million SKUs. It doesn’t have any warehouse and doesn’t own any inventory.

It lately added two new classes “Sports activities & Wellness” and “Pets” to their 5 core product classes “Home & Living, Grocery, Beauty, Kids and Fashion” and expects to expand to new categories, such as perishable food.

Operational insights

Firstly, it allows a minimal order of €100 versus the minimal portions brands usually impose. That order could include items from several manufacturers. A €300 order qualifies for free delivery within Europe. Ankorstore cooperates with Alma bank and provides credit terms: it pays the vendor as soon as the products arrive at the retailer, while the retailer pays within 60 days!

There is no joining fee, monthly fee or listing fee to sell on Ankorstore. They only take a commission on sales: 20% on new retailers’ first order, 10% on reorders (exc. VAT). 0% commission on orders from your existing stockists. There is a special 20% discount on all orders between EU & UK.

It organizes different events such as Lift Days and Black Friday and allows brand to create frequent newsletters. It rewards brands who bring more customers on their platform by offering a €100 discovery offer on those brands to ensure they get as many new customers as possible from their network the following month.

It offers for free financial, logistics management and Customer Relationship Management tools to support a smooth and effective interaction between retailers and brands.

In short time it established presence in 23 countries across Europe and has local offices in France, Germany, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Sweden.

Brands can sell their products if they are located in one of the following countries: France , Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, The Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom, Sweden , Finland , Ireland, Italy , Portugal , Lithuania , Estonia, Slovakia, Latvia, Slovenia, Malta , Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Hungary .

Purchase is available from the above countries and additionally from Switzerland , Luxembourg and Greece .

Impact for Wholesalers and Distributors

The new, trendy, upcoming brands is the lifeblood for distributors and wholesalers. It is an art and a science to choose the winners and invest in helping them grow. These brands will now go directly to the retailers and when they grow will directly reach any key accounts. The role of the wholesalers and distributors will inevitably diminish!

Of course, there are other strategies they need to follow to survive in this quickly changing environment. For more insights, you can read my article on LinkedIn: Way Forward in Β2Β Sales / Part 3: Marketplaces