Guides
How European marketplaces actually work.
Written from daily operating work, not theory. Each guide answers one question a brand owner faces on the way into Europe, reviewed when the marketplaces change the rules.
The standard
- One real question per guide
- Written by the team that runs the work
- Honest about when an option is wrong
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Selling on bol.com as a foreign brand
The Benelux default store expects Dutch-language listings, local returns and local service. What that takes, and the three routes in.
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Own accounts, an agency, or a distributor?
The three classic routes into European marketplaces, what each one really costs, and the honest way to choose between them.
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The expansion order that works
Start with a suitable Amazon market, then assess which European stores or additional marketplaces have a clear role in the plan.
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Allegro for Western brands
Assess Allegro using demand, competition and operating requirements for the actual category and product range.
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Kaufland: the second shelf in Germany
When Kaufland can complement Amazon in Germany, what to assess before launch, and when to keep the focus on Amazon.
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Marketplace operator or agency?
An agency optimises your account; an operator sells through its own and carries the operation. The head-to-head decision, and when each model is the right answer.
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Commission-based marketplace management
No retainer: the operator earns only when your brand sells. How the model works mechanically, what the commission covers, and where its honest limits are.
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Selling on bol.com as a German brand
Amazon.de success doesn’t transfer to bol automatically. What bol expects, and whether to open your own Dutch operation or go through a partner.
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Expanding to Amazon.nl and Amazon.com.be
Start on Amazon.nl or extend an existing European range. Choose the products, delivery route and responsibilities before adding another store.
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Allegro or Kaufland.pl: which comes first in Poland?
Compare Allegro and Kaufland.pl using category demand, fulfilment and operating costs. Existing Kaufland operations can affect the practical starting point.
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Stopping MAP erosion and grey-market sellers
Prices sliding and sellers you never supplied turning up on your listings? In the EU, enforcing a minimum price is the one move that makes it worse. The working lever is distribution control.
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GPSR, economic operator and brand gating
Check product safety obligations, the responsible economic operator and required listing information. Brand protection depends on the rights, facts and platform rules.
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Sell on European marketplaces from outside the EU
Eligibility depends on the marketplace, the business and its country of establishment. Agree who handles tax, imports, product safety, packaging, returns and local service before launch.
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Why Kaufland rejects seller applications
Kaufland registration is a compliance audit with a form attached. What it checks, why applications stall, and what to fix before you apply.
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Selling on bol.com through a partner account
For EU brands without a Dutch presence: stock in Rotterdam, sale as call-off, invoice per period, payment after the sale — how the model runs step by step, and what to bring. The model, not tax advice.
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Start with the Brand Review
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Free and written: send your product range and where you sell today, and within five working days you get a verdict on which marketplaces fit and what we would do first.
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