Recently, Ulta Beauty announced plans to launch a marketplace featuring beauty and wellness products. Earlier this year, Best Buy opened its own marketplace. Large retailers are turning to this model, from Urban Outfitters to Michaels.
There are several reasons why they would do so: increasing revenue through sales and advertising fees, gathering valuable market data, and of course expanding their assortment without holding more inventory.
However, I’ve noticed that for existing marketplaces like Shein, Etsy, and eBay, the focus is no longer on expanding their assortment but on showing the right products to the right customers.
These marketplaces used to thrive on offering the widest possible selection. But at some point, every generic marketplace starts selling the same products, and the excitement slows down for customers—how many brands of garlic presses do you really need to choose from?
Now, these platforms are working on offering curated selections, sometimes using AI-powered recommendations, sometimes with an actual employee selecting the products. Customers want choices, but they also want to minimize shopping time. I believe decision paralysis can hurt sales, making curated selections a smart move in today’s environment.
