9 Online Wholesale Marketplaces to Grow Your Business

Finding a quality wholesaler or retailer can be tough.

Especially if you don’t have the time or resources to do extensive research or attend costly trade shows.

To make matters even more difficult, the business-to-business (B2B) world isn’t exactly easy to navigate.

Or is it?

These days, there’s a host of online wholesale marketplaces trying to make it easier for suppliers and buyers to successfully partner up.

So, whether you’re a wholesaler looking for a retailer, or a retailer looking for hot new products, you’ve come to the right place.

Here are nine online wholesale marketplaces worth checking out.

Handshake

 

I know, I know: I’m starting with our own marketplace. But hear me out before moving on to all the other awesome ones on here.

Handshake is the new kid on the block.

Launched in 2020, it’s backed by Shopify – the world’s second-largest ecommerce market.

Shopify strives to provide everything businesses need to effectively grow their sales online, in person, or through social channels.

With Shopify, you can build an online store, process online payments, source products to sell, market your business through digital channels, sell in person with its point-of-sale (POS) system, and more.

And Shopify’s online wholesale marketplace is shaking things up.

Instead of listing any and every business, Handshake is focused on facilitating lasting, profitable partnerships between wholesalers and retailers. 

Hence, “Handshake”!

This means that every wholesaler is vetted for authenticity and quality before joining the platform.

What’s more, the huge selection of products isn’t like the usual generic products you’ll find on Amazon or other online wholesale marketplaces.

Instead, Handshake is full of unique products that can help your business stand out from the crowd.

Next up?

Global Sources

Global Sources is a Chinese wholesale marketplace based in Hong-Kong.

The company was founded in 1970 by Merle A. Hinrichs and C. Joseph Bendy as “Trade Media Ltd.” and has been helping to connect businesses for 50 years.

That’s pretty epic.

Back then, the company produced a trade magazine titled Asian Sources. Soon enough, it began creating industry-specific spin-off trade magazines, such as Asian Sources Electronics and Asian Sources Hardwares.

Now let’s fast-forward to 1996 when the company launched Asian Sources Online, along with its monthly CD-ROM. These two new channels were designed to complement and supplement the company’s trade publications.

Remember CD-ROMs?

Today Global Sources’ core business still facilitates trade between Asia and the world through its online wholesale marketplace, magazines, and trade shows.

They also have a mobile app to make it easier to search for wholesalers or retailers on-the-go.

The platform makes it easy to get started, too.

Retailers can browse products without an account. Wholesalers can simply sign up to promote their products for free, to more than 1.5 million international buyers in more than 240 countries and territories.

The online wholesale marketplace also has a paid Verified Supplier program that sellers can use to demonstrate their trustworthiness to buyers.

eWorldTrade

eWorldTrade was established in Dallas, Texas, in the United States, back in 1993.

The company provides a range of ecommerce services designed to connect manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers.

Although eWorldTrade is based in the U.S., its operational unit is in Pakistan. It also has offices in China and Nigeria.

The platform services more than 500,000 registered users in over 220 countries.

eWorldTrade is similar to other online wholesale marketplaces in that it allows suppliers and manufacturers to list their products for buyers to browse.

It also presents comprehensive directories of companies, manufacturers, and buyers. 

This makes it particularly good for wholesalers and manufacturers who are actively looking for new retail partners.

Why?

Well, instead of simply signing up, listing products, and waiting for retailers to get in contact, suppliers can take the initiative and contact suitable retailers directly.

On the flip side, this can also make things easier for buyers.

Buyers can simply post a simple listing to let suppliers know what they need and which country they need it shipped to.

eWorldTrade provides five different paid membership plans for suppliers: Lite, Gold, Platinum, Platinum+, and Exclusive.

For between $399 and $7,999 per year, suppliers can access additional features, as well as other business services, such as trade show assistance and digital marketing.

TradeIndia

TradeIndia is another online wholesale marketplace from – you guessed it – India!

The company was founded in 1996 by Bikky Khosla and is headquartered in New Delhi. Today, TradeIndia has branch offices in 35 cities across the country.

TradeIndia provides a range of business services, such as an online payment portal, business loans, shipping and freight, and digital marketing.

It’s the country’s second-largest B2B wholesale marketplace – after IndiaMart – and has more than 4.48 million registered users.

Oddly enough, these users are evenly split between sellers and buyers, when most platforms have far more buyers than sellers.

The platform mainly connects Indian suppliers with buyers around the world, but like most other wholesale marketplaces, businesses from all over the world use the site.

The platform also provides a mobile app so you can manage your business wherever you are.

The online wholesale marketplace lists a huge amount of products in 2,223 product categories and sub-categories, such as machinery, agriculture, and medical supplies.

Plus, TradeIndia makes it simple to get started.

Retailers can browse products for free or post a “buy requirement.” Suppliers can sign up for a free account for one year that allows them to list up to 50 products on the platform.

Alibaba

Alibaba is the world’s leading platform for global wholesale trade.

Launched back in 1999, this Chinese multinational tech company provides a host of services for businesses and consumers. These include an online wholesale marketplace, electronic payment system, and cloud computing service.

To put it lightly, Alibaba is big.

It’s one of the top 10 most valuable companies in the world, and according to Forbes’ Global 2000 list, it’s the 59th biggest public company in the world.

The company attained worldwide fame after closing its initial public offering (IPO) at US$25 billion – the world’s largest in history. To put this in perspective, it was larger than Google, Twitter, Facebook’s IPOs combined.

Huge, right?

Today, Alibaba’s online wholesale marketplace serves buyers in more than 190 countries and regions.

It also showcases hundreds of millions of products in more than 40 major categories, such as machinery, apparel, and consumer electronics. 

Bottom line, you can find pretty much anything on Alibaba.

Wholesalers can sign up for a free account – however, this doesn’t allow access to many of the platform’s most useful features, such as payment security. Alternatively, suppliers can pay to access Alibaba’s Gold Supplier or Verified Supplier memberships.

On the other hand, buyers can use this wholesale marketplace for free!

Alibaba is a great place to find products from China – although Alibaba is used by suppliers from all over the world, the vast majority of its suppliers are Chinese businesses.

Now, it’s worth noting that there’s plenty of scammers and unscrupulous sellers on Alibaba, so watch your step.

Also, once you create an account on Alibaba, you’ll get bombarded with emails from suppliers. For this reason, it’s best to create a new email address to use when you sign up to stop the emails from drowning your inbox.

Made-In-China

Made-In-China is an online wholesale marketplace that connects buyers with Chinese suppliers.

Founded in 1998 by John Shen, Made-in-China is owned and operated by the holding company Focus Technology Co., Ltd.

Now, Made-In-China has four key business aspects.

The first allows buyers to source suppliers. This can be done by searching their wholesale marketplace or using their Easy Sourcing Service – simply post a listing and wait to be connected with potential suppliers.

The second service is focused on verifying suppliers. This is done with existing audit reports for suppliers or through the platform’s Business Information Reports.

The third service facilitates meetings between buyers and sellers, either online or in-person.

And finally, the fourth service manages secure trading with the use of escrow and inspection services.

So, it’s fair to say that Made-In-China has its bases covered.

This online wholesale marketplace also has a mobile app that lets you browse the platform’s millions of products from your smartphone.

Made-In-China has products in 27 categories and 3,600 sub-categories, such as electronics, industrial supplies, and sporting goods.

And like the other wholesale marketplaces listed, you can get started for free.

DHgate 

DHgate is online wholesale marketplace based in… yep, China! Its CEO Diane Wang founded the company in Beijing in 2004.

The company is named after Dunhuang, a Chinese city that was formerly a strategic point on the Silk Road – a network of trade routes connecting the East and West throughout history.

Today, the online wholesale marketplace aspires to be the modern incarnation of Dunhuang, promoting healthy trade between China and the rest of the world.

It seems to do a pretty good job, too.

DHgate lists approximately 2.2 million sellers globally serving 26 million buyers from more than 222 countries and regions.

In fact, the platform boasts a transaction every 1.3 seconds!

What’s more, this online wholesale marketplace has 22 million product listings in categories such as Toys, Electronics, and Musical Instruments.

Like the wholesalers listed above, buyers can browse products without an account or sign up for free.

Alternatively, buyers can increase their monthly transaction amount to join DHgates VIP Zone and enjoy additional features, such as live chat and an exclusive account manager.

Unfortunately, DHgate is only available to suppliers in China, Korea, or Turkey.

Joor

Joor is an online wholesale marketplace based in the U.S.

The site claims to be the world’s largest wholesale platform and data exchange for fashion, beauty, and home.

The company has raised a whopping $36 million in venture capital funding since it was founded in 2010 by Mona Bijoor.

Joor is headquartered in New York and has offices in Los Angeles, Philadelphia, London, Madrid, Milan, Paris, and Melbourne.

The platform now has 8,600 suppliers serving 200,000 retailers.

However, unlike most other wholesale marketplaces, Joor is a closed website and you must request a demo before you can start using the platform.

Etsy

Okay, Etsy isn’t exactly a wholesale marketplace – but hear me out.

Etsy is an ecommerce platform focused on handmade, vintage, and craft items. These products fall into a wide range of categories, such as jewelry, clothing, and furniture.

The platform was founded in New York by Josh Silverman back in 2005.

And by the end of 2018, Etsy had over 60 million items listed on its marketplace. It now has 2.1 million sellers serving 39.4 million buyers.

Want to know the best part? The wholesale section of the site is growing fast. 

If you search “wholesale” on the platform, you’ll find more than 500,000 products available in bulk.

So, if you have a small business, Etsy is a great place to buy or sell unique products in small wholesale batches.

Built for consumers, this platform is easy to navigate.

Etsy is free to use for buyers and sellers can sign up for free – Etsy only charges suppliers when they make a sale.

Summary: 9 Epic Online Wholesale Marketplaces

There are plenty of wholesale marketplaces online.

These platforms are built to connect B2B buyers and sellers across the globe. And although many are based in China or India, the users of these platforms come from all over the world.

Have we missed any great online wholesale marketplaces? Which platform do you prefer and why? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!