Should you sell on Amazon, Etsy, or TikTok Shop... or build your own Shopify/Prestashop store? Each model has its benefits, risks, and limitations. Here is a strategic analysis for choosing the right growth driver — or combining the two intelligently.

Introduction

This is one of the most important decisions for an online merchant:
👉 Sell on Marketplaces (Amazon, Etsy, Cdiscount, TikTok Shop...)
👉 or develop Its own online store (Shopify, Prestashop, WooCommerce...)?

Many start on a marketplace (easy, fast...), others prefer their own store (control, branding...). But the real question is not “one or the other”, it is:
What model really makes it possible to SCALE effectively?

To answer, we will compare 5 key dimensions: margin, acquisition, data, brand, scalability.

1. Marketplace: ease... but at what price?

✅ Benefits

• Immediate access to Millions of customers
• Trust already installed (Amazon reassures)
• Simplified logistics (FBA, returns management)
• Quick start (no site required)

❌ Disadvantages

• High Fees (8% to 20% of turnover... or more)
• Total Dependence on the Platform
• No Real Ownership of the Customer data
• Fierce Internal Competition (same products)
• Difficult to build a Mark

👉 Good for starting or testing a product, but dangerous to only be on.

2. Owner store: more control, more work

✅ Benefits

• Higher Margin (less commission)
• Strong branding (unique experience)
• Ownership of Customer data
• Possibility to automate/customize
• Total freedom (price, design, upsell, CRM...)

❌ Disadvantages

• Requires Paid or Organic Traffic
• Technical management (except if Shopify)
• Do-it-yourself logistics
• Higher initial costs

👉 Great long-term lever... if you know how to attract and retain customers.

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3. The real question: acquisition vs retention
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Model:
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Marketplace:
Easy acquisition? -> ✅ Yes, traffic already present
Easy loyalty? -> ❌ No, no customer relationship

Store:
Easy acquisition? -> ❌ No, you have to generate traffic
Easy loyalty? -> ✅ Yes, you control the experience

4. DATA: the gold of e-commerce

Marketplace

❌ You don't have access to the complete data
❌ You can't exploit emails/behaviors
❌ The customer is a “marketplace customer, not your brand”

Boutique

✅ You master CRM, average basket, LTV, segmentation
✅ You build effective remarketing strategies
✅ You Can Launch Loyalty Programs and Subscriptions

5. What strategies do the most successful brands adopt?

👉 The Hybrid Model (the most powerful):

✅ Marketplaces = fast customer acquisition
✅ Owner store = loyalty + branding + profitability

Exemples:

• Nike → Leaves Amazon to Strengthen Its Brand But Stays on Some Channels
• Sephora → marketplace + site + app + stores
• DTC brands (Gymshark, Glossier) → proprietary site + social platform + pop-ups

6. The Real Challenge: The Ability to Manage Several Channels

The more channels you multiply, the more you need to:

• Manage inventory in real time
• Track Margins by Channel
• Centralize customer data
• Visualize your overall cash flow

👉 And that's where most online retailers drown.

7. And Klark in all of this?

Klark acts like Center cockpit for multi-channel e-retailers:

✅ Aggregates data from Shopify, Prestashop, marketplaces...
✅ Track sales, cash flow, and profitability by channel
✅ Centralizes customers (integrated CRM)
✅ Allows you to see Where Do You Really Make Money

🎯 Result: you can scale across multiple channels without losing control.


Conclusion

There is no “best” universal model.
👉 Marketplace = acquisition accelerator
👉 Owner store = brand leverage + profitability
👉 Combined = most powerful growth strategy

The key is not to choose, but to pilot intelligently.

💡 Practical tip: Start on a marketplace to test the market, then continuously migrate to a proprietary store — while keeping both.

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