Uppler, an Internet marketplace where retailers can buy from thousands of brand manufacturers of apparel and other products, has grown to 2,000 suppliers and 30,000 buyers since it launched in May 2014, Uppler business developer Timothee Bensimon says.
Suppliers from 150 countries have created accounts on the site, including Best Mountain, a branded manufacturer of women’s apparel based in France; and American Vintage, another French company that manufactures both men’s and women’s apparel. The number of suppliers is increasing by 10%, or about 200, every month, and Uppler processes 1,200 orders monthly, Bensimon says. The number of invoices processed is growing 20% month over month, he says.
Buyers on Uppler.com can search some 60,000 products from seven categories, including electronics, apparel and health.
Once a supplier has created a user profile on Uppler, it can upload an unlimited number of images of its products. The site acts as a social network as well as a trading portal, where a buyer and supplier “approve” each other and then gain access to the other’s profile.
Buyers can view new product collections, promotions and news from a list of suppliers they choose to follow. Sellers can search for retailers who meet their buying criteria. The site is available in French, English, Spanish and German, and payment can be made through MasterCard and Visa credit cards and processed in euros. In the next two months, the company plans to also offer payments in U.S. dollars.
All payment, order and shipping information is stored in suppliers’ profiles on Uppler.com. Uppler can also integrate with buyers’ inventory management software, letting retailers automatically update their inventory records after purchasing products from suppliers on Uppler.com.
Membership on Uppler is free to buyers. It’s also free to suppliers for the first seven days. Once the trial period is over, suppliers can choose from three monthly subscription options: Silver, priced at 29 euros (US$32.48) monthly with a limit on the number of products placed on the marketplace and daily invitations received at 15; Gold, priced at 69 euros (US$77.27) monthly which limits the number of daily invitations at 30; and Tailor-Made, at 299 euros (US$334.84), which limits the number of daily invitations at 100.
Uppler maintains offices in Paris and Tel Aviv, Israel.
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