Obertshausen, October 2022. Since the increased focus on the DTC business, PICARD invested a lot of time and manpower in the past twelve months to build up a technical and logistical setup for a powerful platform distribution. Success came quickly and today numerous marketplaces at home and abroad are directly integrated. In order for others to benefit as well, PICARD now also acts as a so-called "enabler" and offers sales on platforms as a service for third-party brands. This is particularly interesting for brands for whom the hurdles of the individual marketplaces are too high or who simply do not have the expertise or manpower in the team to carry out an integration.
After the big run on the platforms during the Corona lockdowns, some marketplaces no longer integrate new partners and have put new integrations on hold. It is therefore not uncommon for the recommendation to be made directly to an "enabler" who already sells on the platform. The reasons are obvious: for the marketplaces, too, a new integration means work and uncertainty as to whether the sellers really meet the requirements of the platform.
PICARD Marketplace Manager Johanna Jankowski is well aware of the difficulties: "The marketplace business is not an easy one. Besides the fact that you need squeaky-clean product data, the maintenance of which alone is a full-time job, there are also logistical hurdles to overcome, as the marketplaces impose strict deadlines for shipping times and returns processing. In addition, each marketplace has different requirements for item master data and the transmission of fulfilment notifications, which must be met by the sellers. Without a team that takes care of integration and maintenance of the platforms, the business is basically not profitable to run." For PICARD, the marketplaces are a success story. From a standing start, the company now has a solid 7-digit turnover and integrates new platforms almost every month.