Most brands that want to sell in Europe start with the wrong question: 'which marketplace is the biggest?' The right question has two layers - which country you intend to sell in, and what job each platform is supposed to do for you. Germany's leading platform is almost invisible in Poland; the approach that works on Temu will not get past the front door at Zalando.
The landscape is not static, either. In the last eighteen months alone Wayfair pulled out of Germany, ASOS shut its marketplace, Rakuten France failed to find a buyer and closes permanently at the end of 2026, Kaufland added the Netherlands and Spain to reach nine countries, and Miravia was folded into AliExpress. The platform list that is correct today will not be correct in two years.
Below we map Europe country by country, explain what each platform is actually good for, and set out the real threshold an international brand faces in each market.
Marketplace Universe's quadrant methodology is a useful starting frame: platforms sit somewhere on two axes, price-led to brand-led and generalist to specialist.
But those axes tell you where a platform stands, not what it will do for you. For a brand selling cross-border into Europe, the second question is the decisive one.
The common view of Temu, Shein and AliExpress is that they are discount channels and a brand only gets damaged there. The reality is more complicated. These platforms have structural advantages:
No advertising cost. A competitive price already sells the product, and the platform runs its own campaigns to push it. On mainstream marketplaces you carry a serious advertising line as a share of revenue; here that line simply does not exist.
Low commissions. Noticeably lower than mainstream marketplaces, which is exactly what makes the competitive pricing possible.
Price discipline. The platform stops sellers from pricing arbitrarily. That sounds like a constraint, but the result is a predictable competitive environment across the whole platform.
Subsidised logistics. When shipping is free, the platform absorbs the cost or passes on its own scale advantage. Mainstream marketplaces have equivalents, but only if you put stock into their warehouse - FBA, ZFS and so on. Here there is no such condition.
So why are there so few non-Chinese sellers? Because getting in is not easy. The seller base is overwhelmingly Chinese and the rules for non-local sellers are strict: an EU company and an EU warehouse are mandatory.
The conclusion is not 'this platform is good, that one is bad':
| Objective | Suitable channel | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Clearing stock - past season, overstock, liquidity | Temu, Shein, AliExpress, Secret Sales | Sales without advertising, low commission, fast turnaround |
| Brand building - positioning, premium perception | Zalando, About You, Otto, Fnac | High entry threshold, brand-led customer base |
| Campaign volume - reaching a wide audience on a discount logic | limango, Veepee/Privalia | Closed platforms, but sales driven by price and campaigns |
| Volume and reach | Amazon, Kaufland, Allegro, eMAG, bol., Cdiscount | Generalist traffic, broad category coverage |
| New audiences and trends | TikTok Shop | Content-led, a different operation altogether |
The real skill is using these channels for their intended purpose and in balance. Every brand has stock it needs to clear; burning margin in the wrong channel when the right one exists is unnecessary. Equally, trying to build a brand in a liquidation channel does not work.
A newer option - JoyBuy. JD.com's European marketplace JoyBuy deliberately keeps its distance from the cheap end occupied by Temu and AliExpress, positioning itself to brands as an Amazon alternative. Chinese-funded but not price-led, it sits somewhere between 'brand building' and 'volume and reach' in the table above. Still young, but worth watching.
One caution: the two axes do not always line up. A platform being closed - that is, choosing who it lets in - does not automatically make it brand-led. limango is a good example: seller acceptance is selective, but the sales logic is built on discounts and campaigns. Difficulty at the door is no guarantee of a premium position inside.
Before we get to the countries, there is a distinction worth knowing.
Open platforms (Amazon, Kaufland, Allegro, eMAG, Cdiscount) are ones you register with; if you meet the technical requirements, the account opens.
Closed platforms (Zalando, Otto, About You, bol., limango) are ones you apply to and then wait to be accepted by. Even if you meet every technical condition, acceptance is not guaranteed - your selling history, your brand portfolio and how well that portfolio fits the platform's strategy all get assessed. Realistically, with an EU company already in place, the process takes nine to twelve months.
Europe's largest market, the toughest competition, the most mature consumer.
Platforms: Amazon.de, Otto, Zalando, About You, Kaufland.de, limango, Home24, MediaMarkt/Saturn, Douglas, ManoMano, Dress-for-less
Zalando, Otto, About You and limango are closed platforms. At limango the process sometimes runs in reverse: the platform approaches the sellers it wants.
What sets limango apart: it is a family-focused platform. Fashion is strong, but the real weight sits in kids, home and cosmetics. The sales logic is built on discount perception and campaigns - so despite being closed, it is not a premium shop window. Efficient for brands chasing volume in kids and home, the wrong address for anyone trying to lift their brand positioning.
What is moving: Kaufland is expanding into Spain and the Netherlands. About You is planning to enter the home category - not live yet, no confirmed date. Wayfair, meanwhile, withdrew completely from Germany and Austria in January 2025 and is no longer on this map.
The Amazon FBM threshold has tightened (15 July 2026): Amazon introduced a 90% on-time delivery requirement and a one-day handling time for seller-fulfilled (FBM) orders across five EU marketplaces; deactivations for accounts that miss the threshold begin in September. For any model that ships direct from a hub outside the EU and consolidates domestically, this single change is enough to force the local warehouse decision.
Local characteristics: return rates are structurally high, especially in fashion. Invoice-based payment is a widespread habit. This is also the market where product compliance - EPR, WEEE, packaging registration, GPSR - is policed most strictly.
Entering from outside the EU: you need an EU company and warehouse, shipments with approved local carriers, return tracking numbers, local-language customer service and technical integration. EPR registration is required to open the account; GPSR bites at the listing stage.
Large and distinctive. Loyalty to local platforms is high and the language expectation is strict.
Platforms: Amazon.fr, Cdiscount, Fnac/Darty, ManoMano, Veepee, La Redoute
A confirmed development: Rakuten France is closing. The platform had been up for sale since April; the binding offers that came in did not meet the criteria, no buyer was found, and the closure is permanent. It had traded since 1997 under the PriceMinister name; roughly 2,500 sellers lose the channel and 180 employees are affected. Because of the shared organisational structure, the Spanish operation is closing too.
It is a reminder that choosing a platform is also a decision about dependency: a seller leaning on a single channel is caught unprepared when that channel closes.
A local rule - Triman: France layers its own requirements on top of EU law, and the strictest of them is packaging labelling. Since 2022 the Triman logo and the sorting instruction (Info-Tri) must physically appear on the packaging - showing it on your website is not enough. The scope is broad: packaging, textiles, footwear, furniture, electronics, batteries and paper products. Where your company is based and which channel you sell through make no difference; if you sell to a French consumer, the obligation is yours. Penalties can reach serious levels.
French is expected not only in listings but in customer service as well.
Small, but with high spending power and outstanding digital maturity.
Platforms: bol. (the local leader), Amazon.nl (clearly behind), Kaufland
Local characteristics: the iDEAL payment method dominates; conversion drops if it is not supported. Belgium is reachable through a single operation.
Entering from outside - one of Europe's hardest thresholds: bol. expects a company in the Netherlands or Belgium; being established somewhere in the EU is not enough. You are also asked to demonstrate revenue potential of around 500,000 euros a year.
One striking metric in seller performance is the customer question rate. The expectation is that your content and your service are good enough that the customer never needs to ask. If the question rate climbs, the account can be suspended. What is being measured is not just sales, but friction.
Platforms: Allegro (locally dominant, now expanded into Czechia and Slovakia), Amazon.pl (no clear progress against Allegro)
Local characteristics: the InPost parcel-locker culture dominates - delivery largely happens through automated lockers. A logistics setup built on the assumption of door delivery does not hold up here.
An honest assessment: opening an account is relatively easy; if you meet the technical requirements, it opens. In practice, selling means putting stock into Allegro's warehouse - hitting a high SLA from outside with FBM is difficult.
But that is not the main issue. Poland is Europe's manufacturing centre - prices are low and competitive, while consumer purchasing power is not high. Profitable selling here is hard for brands importing from outside the region. Brands that enter on the strength of volume potential are usually disappointed on margin.
Platforms: eMAG (the long-standing leader), Trendyol (growing fast), About You and Zalando (also growing quickly)
Why it is interesting: Trendyol's rise in Romania has started to make eMAG's leadership genuinely contestable, and a second serious generalist channel in a single market is rare in Europe. For a brand entering the country it means there is a realistic alternative route in rather than one gatekeeper setting all the terms.
Romania also offers the combination of low competition and growing volume; the early-mover advantage is still open.
Platforms: Amazon.it, Zalando, Veepee/Privalia, About You
The landscape is not as fragmented as Germany or France; Amazon's weight is obvious, while on the fashion side Zalando and About You keep gaining ground.
Platforms: Amazon.es, El Corte Ingles, MediaMarkt, Kaufland, AliExpress
Miravia, updated: the process is complete. Alibaba simplified its structure by folding Miravia, its Spain-specific platform, into AliExpress; Miravia is no longer a separate channel. Management had already been aligned beforehand (Miravia's CEO took over AliExpress Europe) and catalogue migration had been made possible. Building a separate Miravia strategy for Spain is now obsolete.
A difficult market - an honest assessment: in textiles, competition is extremely high because of Inditex. Delivery costs from a German warehouse into Spain are high too; being competitive requires serious localisation, which is expensive and hard. For most international brands, choosing Spain as the first market is not an efficient decision.
Platforms: Amazon.co.uk, eBay UK, TikTok Shop, Secret Sales, Debenhams, OnBuy
ASOS Marketplace is no longer a separate channel; sellers were migrated to the main asos.com site in 2025.
The Brexit reality - but not where people assume: separate VAT registration, a separate customs process and a separate compliance regime all apply. On product marking, however, the picture has softened: for the large majority of consumer products the UK recognises CE marking indefinitely, and UKCA is voluntary rather than mandatory. There are exceptions - medical devices, construction products and marine equipment follow their own timetables.
Northern Ireland is a separate matter: under the Windsor Framework, EU rules apply and UKCA alone is not sufficient.
Secret Sales: runs on flash-sale logic and deep discounts are expected. A good channel for clearing past-season stock.
TikTok Shop has reached meaningful scale in the UK, particularly in cosmetics and textiles. It is growing fast across the rest of Europe too, and the platform is investing heavily in Germany.
The reason to treat it separately is that it works differently from traditional marketplace logic: discovery rather than search, content rather than listings. Products sell through video and creator partnerships, not through product-page optimisation. You cannot copy your existing marketplace operation across as-is - it needs a separate capability.
Change the category within the same country and the landscape changes with it.
If you sell fashion in Germany, you are talking about Zalando, About You, Otto and limango. In home products Home24 comes forward, and ManoMano is a sensible direction though usually as a later step. In electronics it is MediaMarkt/Saturn, in cosmetics Douglas.
Generalist platforms exist in every category, but the specialist platform often converts better: less traffic, higher intent.
One measure that helps when planning: according to ECDB data, only 9% of European e-commerce volume is cross-border, and 92.5% of that cross-border volume goes to China.
That has two consequences. First, when you set a target of 'cross-border sales in Europe' you are aiming at a narrow slice of the market rather than the whole of it - calibrate expectations accordingly. Second, almost all of that slice is taken by Chinese sellers; the side you are competing against is not the local European brand.
The country breakdown gives direction too. Germany, Sweden and the UK shop predominantly at home and the cross-border share is low. In Portugal, Austria and Ireland the figure climbs to 42%. Small markets are structurally more open to cross-border sellers - the reflex to start with the biggest market can be misleading here.
| Criterion | What it determines |
|---|---|
| Product category | Specialist or generalist platform |
| Objective | Clearing stock, brand building or volume |
| Margin structure | Capacity to carry the returns and advertising load |
| EU company and warehouse | Whether closed platforms are reachable at all |
| Logistics network | Whether you can work with approved local carriers |
| Selling history | Assessed directly in closed-platform applications |
| Language resource | FR, IT, PL localisation and customer service load |
| Compliance readiness | EPR, packaging labelling, GPSR |
| Fixed-cost tolerance | 5,000-10,000 euros a month during the setup period |
This table deliberately does not recommend a single 'starting country'. Any content that does is either selling something or oversimplifying the problem.
A balancing note: everything up to here describes the weight of the setup phase. But this is also true - once setup is complete and products are listed, the first order in fashion usually arrives within two or three days. The hard part is not selling; it is becoming able to sell.
If Amazon is your first move, the country-by-country mechanics are covered separately in Amazon marketplace management, and channel-level price positioning in pricing.
If you have read this far you have seen the whole picture: market selection, platform-portfolio fit, acceptance processes, an EU company and warehouse, approved carriers, returns infrastructure, country-specific compliance rules, localisation, customer service.
None of these is unsolvable on its own. The real difficulty lies elsewhere: a shortage of know-how and rules that keep changing. This article is its own proof - Wayfair leaves a market, ASOS closes its channel, Rakuten shuts France, Kaufland opens two new countries, About You prepares a new category, a platform quietly tightens its acceptance criteria. Unforeseen problems come up along the way, and most of them are not written down anywhere.
The only way to cope with that uncertainty is to live with it every day.
MegaMerchant is your brand's cross-border e-commerce department - with an established EU structure, working logistics and integration infrastructure, existing platform relationships, and a team that has run these processes before.
A transparency note: we are not on every platform on this map.
We currently run operations on more than 30 marketplaces. That number can look high at first glance, and the reason is this: on Amazon every country is managed as a separate marketplace - separate account, separate listings, separate tax and compliance obligations. The German, British, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Polish and Belgian Amazons are not one 'Amazon' but nine distinct operations.
Alongside those we are active on Zalando, Otto, About You, limango, Kaufland, Home24, Dress-for-less, bol., Allegro, eMAG, eBay, Secret Sales, Etsy, Walmart, TikTok Shop, Temu, Shein, AliExpress, Trendyol and Hepsiburada. We have just started on Cdiscount, and About You France and Italy are on our agenda.
We have covered the markets we are not in as well - because which platform suits your brand matters more than whether we happen to be there.
The information on this page was last updated on 21 July 2026. The marketplace landscape changes quickly - platforms open up new countries and categories, and some withdraw from markets altogether. For current information:
MegaMerchant is the seller of record abroad: accounts, compliance, logistics and returns run on our side.
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