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How digital B2B marketplaces work

Firstly, there are Horizontal Marketplaces; ‘generalists’ offering a wide inventory of products to a broad range of sectors. This is where you will find the likes of Alibaba, Flipkart or EC21.

Then, there are the Vertical Marketplaces (Vortals). These are specialist-focused and tend to deal in one type of product or industry. In the automotive industry, for example, buyers and sellers meet at sites such as Car-Part or PartsMarket. In machinery, that could be Klarx. In tools, Tolexo.

B2B marketplaces can also differentiate along geographical lines. The big, global players transact worldwide (although they may tend to favor manufacturers from specific markets) such as GlobalSources and AmazonBusiness.