B2B marketplaces in 2026 – build your own platform or join an existing marketplace?

Marketplaces are no longer a trend – they are becoming part of the sales architecture

Over the past few years, marketplaces have ceased to be the domain of consumer sales. It is becoming increasingly clear that the platform model is moving into the B2B world, changing the way trading companies build customer relationships, manage their offering and scale sales. In 2026, the question is no longer “whether marketplaces will be important”, but “what role they should play in a company’s sales architecture”.

For many organizations, the moment when the topic of a marketplace appears is a natural consequence of growth. The company has a broad offering, works with many suppliers, operates in different markets and begins to look for a way to increase scale without proportionally increasing operational costs. In this context, a marketplace seems like an obvious direction. The problem is that the decision to build your own platform or join an existing ecosystem is very rarely analyzed strategically. It is more often a reaction to competitors’ actions, market pressure or isolated success stories of other companies.

Build or join – a decision about the business model, not technology

At a superficial level, the decision seems simple. Building your own marketplace means more control, your own ecosystem and potentially higher margins. Joining an existing platform means a faster start, access to a customer base and lower entry risk. In practice, however, the difference between these approaches concerns a much deeper level – the way a company wants to build its market position.

A proprietary marketplace is an attempt to create infrastructure around which other market participants will operate. The company stops being only a seller and starts acting as an ecosystem operator. It is responsible not only for selling its own offer, but also for acquiring and serving suppliers, managing data quality, standardizing processes and developing the platform technology. This is a completely different level of responsibility than running a traditional e-commerce.

Joining an existing marketplace, on the other hand, means operating within someone else’s architecture. The company benefits from traffic, trust and platform infrastructure, but at the same time gives up part of the control over the customer relationship, pricing policy and purchasing experience. In the long term, it becomes one of many participants in an ecosystem where competitive advantage is often based on price and availability.

Why many companies overestimate the potential of their own marketplace

Building your own marketplace is often perceived as a natural step in a company’s development. In reality, it is one of the most demanding business models in e-commerce. The biggest challenge is not technology, but achieving the network effect.

A marketplace works when there is simultaneously an attractive offer for buyers and a sufficient number of buyers for sellers. Without this, the platform remains empty infrastructure. In practice, this means the need to build both sides of the market – supply and demand – in parallel, which requires significant organizational, marketing and operational effort.

Many companies assume that simply “opening the platform to suppliers” will quickly build a broad assortment. In practice, problems arise with data quality, inconsistent product descriptions, different logistics standards and difficulties in managing the offer. Without clearly defined rules and tools to enforce them, a marketplace quickly loses consistency.

Additionally, there is the challenge related to the customer relationship. In the marketplace model, the company no longer controls the entire sales process. Order handling, product availability, delivery time and customer service quality depend on many entities. Each error by one of them affects the perception of the entire platform.

Technologically, solutions such as Shopware make it possible to build marketplace architecture by integrating multiple suppliers and managing a complex product catalog. However, technology alone does not solve the most important problem – whether the company is able to build and maintain an ecosystem that makes business sense.

Why joining a marketplace is not always an easy path to growth

On the other hand, joining an existing marketplace is often treated as a quick way to scale sales. In many cases, it does allow for rapid expansion and access to new customers. However, this model has limitations that often become visible only over time.

The most important of these is the loss of control over the customer relationship. Customer data, purchasing behavior and the ability to build loyalty largely remain on the side of the marketplace operator. The selling company becomes one of many suppliers, and its brand often fades into the background.

Another challenge is price pressure. Marketplaces naturally encourage comparison. Customers see many similar products in one place, which leads to competition primarily based on price. As a result, margins decrease and building a competitive advantage becomes more difficult.

Additionally, dependency on the platform appears. Changes in algorithms, commissions, cooperation rules or offer visibility can directly affect sales. The company loses part of the control over its own sales channel, which in the long term can become a significant business risk.

Marketplace as part of the sales architecture, not a separate project

The biggest mistake in approaching marketplaces is treating them as a separate project, detached from the rest of the business. In reality, the decision to build or join a marketplace should be part of a broader sales strategy.

In mature organizations, a marketplace does not replace e-commerce but becomes one of the sales channels alongside the company’s own platform, direct sales and other distribution models. The key is understanding how these channels work together, what roles they play and how they impact the overall business.

A proprietary marketplace can be used to build an ecosystem around the brand and increase the value of the offering. An external marketplace can serve as a customer acquisition channel or a way to test new markets. Each of these models makes sense if it is consciously embedded in the strategy.

In this context, technological architecture is of great importance. Platforms such as Shopware, thanks to an API-first approach and integration capabilities, allow combining different sales models in one coherent environment. They enable centralized management of product catalogs, pricing and customers, regardless of whether sales take place in your own store, on a marketplace or in other channels.

How to make a decision that makes sense in 2026

The decision to build your own marketplace or join an existing one should not be based on trends. It should result from an analysis of the business model, market position and organizational capabilities of the company.

Companies with a strong market position, a broad customer base and the ability to manage a complex ecosystem may consider building their own marketplace platform. For them, it is an investment in long-term control over the market and customer relationships.

Organizations that want to quickly increase reach and test new markets will often benefit more from existing marketplaces. The condition, however, is conscious management of this channel and avoiding dependence on a single source of sales.

In many cases, the optimal solution is a hybrid model in which the company develops its own e-commerce channel while also using marketplaces as a complement to the sales strategy.

Marketplace as part of transformation, not a goal in itself

In 2026, marketplaces will become an increasingly important element of B2B e-commerce. This does not mean, however, that every company should build its own platform or unreflectively join existing ecosystems.

The most important thing is to understand that a marketplace is not a goal. It is a tool that can support the execution of a business strategy – provided it is used properly.

At CREHLER, we very often work with companies facing this exact dilemma. We analyze their sales model, system architecture and organizational capabilities to help them make decisions that make sense in the long term. Thanks to our experience in Shopware implementations, we know that technology can strongly support marketplace models, but only when it is backed by a coherent strategy and conscious business decisions.