The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted supply chains, forcing distributors and retailers to find alternative product sources. Global B2B exchanges have existed for years. Some are for specific companies. Others are public, for all businesses.
In a post several years ago, I described 20 leading public global B2B exchanges. That list has changed dramatically. What follows is an updated version.
25 Leading B2B Exchanges
ECPlaza launched in 1996 in South Korea. It now has roughly 1 million members, 4 million offers, and more than 40 product categories. Product prices are not shown but are available by contacting the supplier. Suppliers can register for free.
ECVV started in 2006. It has 2.2 million buyers (mainly in Arabic countries) and 950,000 China-based suppliers. The site focuses on machinery, equipment, hardware, building materials, lighting, transport, electronics, and appliances. Buyers and sellers can register for free.
ECVV
Fibre2Fashion is an India-based B2B marketplace focused on the textile industry. It launched in 2000. It has over 1,800 products in 13 categories with a digital presence in more than 190 countries. Registration is free.
Exporters India is a marketplace that connects buyers to manufacturers, suppliers, exporters, wholesalers, traders, and service providers. The site receives roughly 600,000 sourcing inquires monthly. Free registration.
Go4WorldBusiness is an India-based exchange that started in 1997. The site has 800,000 manufacturers and suppliers offering thousands of product categories. Six-thousand daily inquiries are generated on the site between buyers and sellers. Suppliers can sign up for free.
Beldara supports wholesale commerce across 40 product categories. It is headquartered in India, with millions of users from 127 countries. Suppliers register for free.
BaloTrade is a marketplace with thousands of buyers and suppliers. It has offices in the U.K., U.S., and Nigeria. Suppliers can sign up for free. Most suppliers are from India, China, Nigeria, and the U.S.
BaloTrade
Merchant Showroom is a global wholesale marketplace focusing on apparel, fashion accessories, health, beauty, and arts and crafts. The platform includes original-manufacturer order facilitation, wholesale auctions, one-of-a-kind craft categories, approximately 100 integrated shipping companies, product comparisons, and many other features. Suppliers can register for free.
Alibaba is the world’s largest B2B exchange with hundreds of millions of products sold in 190 countries. The exchange allows sellers to register either as global sellers or China-only. Global sellers can create free listings of up to 50 products. This exchange has millions of visitors and receives roughly 280,000 daily product inquiries.
Amazon Business has roughly $10 billion in annual revenue. The exchange offers delayed payment terms, tax-exempt purchasing, multiple payment methods, and guided buying, among other helpful features. Small businesses can link to an Amazon Prime membership on the consumer site to enable benefits. Suppliers can register for free.
ThomasNet.com has over 500,000 suppliers and millions of monthly buyers. Thomas Register has been helping businesses for over a hundred years. The online exchange comes with many tools that assist with product discovery and sourcing. Suppliers can list their business for free.
EC21 started in South Korea in 1997. It now operates globally, with over 2 million suppliers, 7 million products, and 3.5 million buyers. The exchange allows suppliers to register for free and provides them with a home page that can include up to 15 products.
EC21
IndiaMart is India’s largest B2B exchange. The site has roughly 98 million buyers, 5.9 million suppliers, and 66 million products. Sellers can sign up for free. The site offers instant pay, leads from buyers, 24/7 customer service, among other helpful features.
eWorldTrade is a B2B exchange with approximately 500,000 registered members from 200 countries. It transacts products in about 40 categories. The site is available in English and Chinese. Free sign up for suppliers
TradeIndia launched in 1996 and now has nearly 80 million registered sellers and buyers across 2,200 product categories. The site processes roughly 2.5 million weekly interactions. Suppliers can sign up for free, list up to 50 products, and receive digital marketing assistance.
DHgate is a China-based B2B exchange with roughly 2.2 million global sellers, 26 million buyers, and 22 million product listings. The site supports multiple languages — English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Arabic, Korean, Turkish, and Spanish. Suppliers can sign up for free. DHgate integrates with Shopify sites.
FGmarket Vendors launched in 2003 for retail store owners to connect with suppliers and wholesalers. On average, buyers execute 20,000 daily searches looking for products. Suppliers pay $449.99 annually to list their products.
FGmarket Vendors
Wholesale Central is a directory of wholesale-only suppliers. Roughly 1.7 million buyers use Wholesale Central each year. Suppliers pay $399 for six months.
Joor is a retail-focused exchange founded in 2010. Its primary focus is on fashion, beauty, and home. The site works with over 200,000 retailers and 8,600 brands across 144 countries. Joor is based in New York with offices in Paris, Milan, London, and Los Angeles. Interested brands can apply online.
GlobalSources facilitates trade between buyers and suppliers using events and an online marketplace. The site has over 1.5 million worldwide buyers, which includes leading retailers. Suppliers can sign up for free and list up to 100 products.
OFweek is a China-based exchange focused on the high-tech industry. It consists of 25 websites for product categories such as Iot.ofweek.com (internet of things) and Medical.ofweek.com (medical devices). Suppliers can sign up for free. Buyers can complete an online sourcing form to find the right products.
TradeKey is an electronics-focused B2B exchange that launched in 2006. It has operations worldwide and supports multiple languages — Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, and English. Suppliers sign up for free.
TradeKey
Made-in-China launched in 1998 to provide China-based product and supplier information to 10.3 million global buyers. It offers products in 27 categories and supports 11 languages. Suppliers can sign up for free.
Zoodel enables B2B transactions in Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Iran, China, Afghanistan, Iraq, Oman, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The website supports English, Russian, Chinese, Arabic, Persian, and Turkish languages and has approximately 22,000 suppliers and 100,000 buyers. Suppliers can sign up for free and import their entire catalog.
MakersRow helps small businesses identify manufacturers. The site has roughly 10,000 manufacturers that have produced 2 million products. Manufacturers can sign up for free for a basic account. Buyers must register and pay $35 per month.
