Marketplace fulfilment solutions

Fulfilment options of well-known webshops

The big online marketplaces have grown rapidly in recent years. The rise of online retailers such as Bol.com, Amazon, Zalando, and About You foreshadow the shopping experience of the future. Not only do these online retailers sell their own products, but they also allow affiliated partners to sell products via their platform.

Online retailers are quite transparent about the prices and requirements to register on their platform. This is because having many affiliated partners can be lucrative. It can, however, be somewhat confusing for retailers, as each platform has its own rules. In this article, we explain the prices, requirements, and the registration process for the following marketplaces:

• Bol.com
• Amazon
• Zalando 
• About You

If you have questions about fulfilment for the above-mentioned marketplaces or would like to talk to a marketplace specialist about the possibilities for your brand, then click on the arrow below to get in touch with one of our specialists.

General retailers 

Bol.com and Amazon both started out selling books online. Nowadays, these webshops are known by many for selling pretty much anything. If you are looking to join bol.com or Amazon’s unprecedented growth, then keep on reading to learn more about the costs that come with the logistics process.

Fulfilment via bol.com

Below you can read more about bol.com’s logistics conditions. Reading through this information will give you a general idea of the options you have as a retailer, and whether these are interesting for your business. 

Rates

The rates for fulfilment via bol.com depend on the weight and size of the packages. In addition, bol.com calculates stock costs per article per month. The webshop codes the size of the packages with sizes XXXS up to L and determines the costs according to a formula.

There is an additional rule for L-sized packages, which states that the product should not exceed 70 litres. Litre = (maximum length in cm x middle length in cm x smallest length in cm /1000). The prices for the different package sizes are as follows:

These rates are: 

Including:

• Picking & packing costs
• Shipping
• Customer service
• Returns

Excluding:

• VAT
• Commission
• € 0.35 surcharge for fragile items, watches, sunglasses, bags/leather products, baby & toddler clothing, clothing & shoes*
• € 0.35 surcharge for products that have an expiry date*

Conditions to start selling on bol.com

Are you considering selling your products through bol.com? Make sure to check whether you meet the requirements to do so:

• You are registered with the Chamber of Commerce or the Belgian Trade Register and have a Dutch or Belgian VAT number.
• Your products fit within one of the existing categories on bol.com.
• Your products have a GS1-code (previously EAN) or ISBN.
• Customers have the possibility to return your products free of charge within 30 days. 
• You must meet bol.com’s service standards. For example, you must deliver your products within 8 days and be available for customer enquiries on working days between 9 AM and 5 PM.

Registration process

Do you meet the above-mentioned requirements? If so, then you can start selling your products through bol.com by following these four steps:

1. Create your own account
To be able to sell on bol.com, you need an account. This can be an existing private account or you can create a new bol.com account.

2. Double check and accept
Check whether all details have been entered correctly. Read and accept the general terms and conditions.

3. Confirm your application
You will receive an e-mail with a validation link. Click on the link, log in, and fill in additional details such as your bank account and address.

4. Verify your account
You will receive a letter with a verification code within three working days. Once you have entered the code, you can start adding products to your online shop.

Want to know more about selling on bol.com? Read this article for useful tips and tricks.

Fulfilment By Amazon

Amazon also has its own terms and conditions for partners. The rates, requirements, and the application process are explained below. Further details on Fulfillment by Amazon can be found here.

Rates

Amazon uses three fulfilment options, which are:

• European Fulfillment Network;
• Pan-European;
• Multi-Country Inventory. 

Each category has its own rates.

If you have stock in Germany and use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), you will need a German VAT number.

Using the European Fulfillment Network (EFN);

• Order from the United Kingdom (Cross Border)
• Order from the Netherlands or Germany (Domestic FBA)

Suppose you are sure that the new Noise Cancellation Headphones by Sony will be your new hit on Amazon. You’ve bought 100 of them and want to sell them on Amazon in December for € 99,95 each, including VAT.

What will the cost of selling this item through Amazon look like?

• 100 * € 99,95 = € 9.995,00 in gross turnover
• 15% Platform Fee category "Headphones"
• € 9.995,00 * 15% = € 1.499,25.

• Order from the United Kingdom: Cross Border
• £ 5,63

• Order from the Netherlands or Germany: Domestic FBA
• € 2,65
  
  

• Box dimension: 0,3x0,3x0,15= 0,0135 m² per product
• Stock of 100 items: 100 x 0,0135 = 1,35 m²
• Meaning you pay for 1.35 m² per month: 1,35 * 36€ = € 48,60

• € 39,95 + € 1.499,25 + (20*€ 6,20) + (80*€ 2,65) + € 48,60 = € 1923,80
• This is 19.24% of your gross turnover

On average, the cost of selling through Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) when using the European Fulfillment Network (EFN) is around 15% - 25% of your gross sales.

Registration process

Already selling products on Amazon and want to get started with Fulfillment by Amazon? Then follow these 4 steps:

1. Transfer your current listings to Fulfillment by Amazon.

2. Decide whether you want to use Amazon’s labelling service.

3. Prepare to ship your stock.

4. Ship your stock.

Fashion retailers

Fashion retailers have the possibility to make use of online marketplaces too. Well-known marketplaces like Zalando and About You are popular platforms among fashion retailers and offer helpful fulfilment services for partners. Below, you can read all about the logistics conditions of these fashion marketplaces.

Zalando Fulfilment Services

Rates

The rates of Zalando’s fulfilment services depend on the mail-order company that is used to ship the products. Zalando works with partner companies in this part of the process too. You can read about the affiliated mail-order companies in this article.

Requirements and registration

You may be wondering what kind of logistics requirements you need to fulfil in order to take care of the logistics process yourself. Roughly speaking, there are five types of requirements that must be met:

1. You have to sign the Zalando Delivery Service Level Agreement (SLA) - and meet all the requirements of this contract.

2. The last mile carrier must be approved by Zalando. In other words, the ‘last mile’ must be done by a Zalando approved logistics company in the respective country.

3. You have to meet various packaging requirements.

4. You must send a number of delivery documents with each shipment.

5. Customers must be able to ship products free of charge. In addition, customers should be able to return the products free of charge within 100 days.

About You

Online fashion marketplace About You uses different rates depending on the country. With About You, each logistics component has its own price. Not everyone can simply use the platform. In order to offer an excellent customer experience, About You sets high standards for any content that brands want to showcase on the platform. 

Rates

As we mentioned, rates of About You differ for each logistics component. Below is what you can expect as a partner:

• Warehouse entry for all countries: € 0,56
• Storage cost per item per day: € 0,01
• Export from warehouse for all countries: € 0,42
• Packaging per product: varies for each country; between € 0,21 for Switzerland to     € 0,48 for Bulgaria.
• Transportation costs per item to the customer: varies per country. Prices range from € 1,51 for the Netherlands to € 3,93 for Lithuania.
• The rate for returns is € 0,97 for almost all countries, except Switzerland - here you pay € 2,15 per returned product.

Various shipping options

If you are looking to sell your products via About You, you have two different options for shipping: dropshipping or About You’s fulfilment model.

Choosing for dropshipping means that you keep the products in stock and take care of the entire logistics process. You send the ordered products directly to the customer and handle the order yourself. Returns also come directly to you. This way, you have full control over your stock and shipping methods. About You simply offers brands an additional channel to sell and promote their products on.

If you decide to choose for Fulfillment by About You, you also remain the owner of your stock. As a brand, this means that you are still in charge of what products you do and do not wish to offer on the platform. The difference between both shipping options lies in storage and logistics. With Fulfillment by About You, your products are stored in the About You warehouse. On top of that, they take care of logistics and process any returns.  

Want to know more about fulfilment options for various marketplaces? - get in touch with a Brandsom consultant

If you are looking for extensive advice about which fulfilment option is best for your business, contact one of our marketplace consultants to find out what Brandsom can do to help take your logistics process to the next level. Find more information on our homepage, check out our service page or contact us at contact@brandsom.nl / 030-2270520 and request a no-obligation consultation.