Shop.ca opened up a new shop for business customers today.
The Canadian e-marketplace launched Shop.ca Business-to-Business, a service designed for business customers purchasing 10 or more of any item per order.
The B2B site, at Shop-B2B.Squarespace.com, provides customers a personalized shopping pages and a dedicated account manager who ensures final delivery of orders. Customers can also earn points from bulk orders for Shop.ca’s loyalty program with Aeroplan. Aeroplan is an independent loyalty rewards company that lets business buyers and consumers earn points that can be used to pay for travel services, retail merchandise or charitable donations.
Shop.ca decided to launch the B2B site after it noticed Canadian car dealerships, small offices, restaurants and other business customers placing bulk orders, CEO Tony Chvala says. He notes that many of Shop.ca’s business customers have been placing bulk orders of merchandise used in customer promotions and employee incentive programs.
Shop.ca says it has more than 2,000 merchants selling “millions” of products on its e-marketplace. Items are organized into 28 categories, including: Electronics, Office Supplies and Tools. The company did not immediately respond to a request on whether the B2B marketplace would offer industrial products or other items outside of Shop.ca’s standard selection of primarily consumer goods.
To sell on Shop.ca, merchants must warehouse goods in Canada. The marketplace offers free shipping and free returns on purchases.
“Shop.ca B2B services has the potential to be a double-digit growth engine for our marketplace portfolio, and we will continue to add resources to service this important part of Canadian e-commerce,” says Mark Daprato, executive vice president and general manager of Shop.ca.
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