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Rakuten's Play.com is a popular Channel Integration for a number of our oldest and busiest customers. They've recently made some updates to their site, and are interested in talking to any of our sellers who are looking to expand into a new sales channel. Let's hear from them in their own words:
Play.com enjoys a seamless integration with Linn Systems, and are actively seeking new merchant partners from the Linn client base.
Founded in 1998, Rakuten’s Play.com is the UK’s 3rd largest e-commerce marketplace, with a loyal customer base of over 16.5 million registered users. In 2012 it was voted the UK’s Best Entertainment Retailer in Verdict’s Consumer Satisfaction Awards. In 2011, Play.com was acquired by Rakuten, which was in 2012 was selected by Forbes as 7th among the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Rakuten is expanding globally and currently has operations throughout Asia, Western Europe, and the Americas. Other e-commerce marketplaces owned by Rakuten Inc include Rakuten.com (formerly Buy.com) in the US, Priceminister in France and Rakuten Germany.
Rakuten’s Play.com sell products from within the following categories:
1)Media
Film
Music
Games
Books
2)Technology
Electronics
Computing
Office
Mobile
3)Clothing
4)Sports & Outdoors
5)Gifts & Gadgets
6)Toys & Baby
In addition Play will be launching 2 major new categories, scheduled for late October 2013 - Home & Garden (inc DIY), and Health & Beauty and they would be very interested in talking to potential merchant partners who specialize within these areas.
Play.com has recently under gone some fundamental changes which they believe will strengthen the business going forward. The model is one whereby Play.com no longer buys products and sells directly to the customer, but will provide the platform for merchant partners to supply the product range on site. By moving away from direct retail sales it means they will never compete with the merchant, and allows them to focus on optimizing the Marketplace for the benefit of both Merchants and customers alike.
There will be the opportunity to work directly with the Play Product Teams (merchants are assigned both a personal Account Manager and a Technical Account Manager) devising strategic marketing opportunities which will inevitably ensure a fruitful relationship going forward. It is this willingness to work with merchant partners, coupled with an unrivaled array of on-site advertising and marketing options that makes Play a unique proposition. In short it’s a platform that allows the merchant to take a proactive part in the hands-on management of their business on Play, and a partnership focused on maximizing revenues from the site.
Fees
Play have also introduced a new fee structure based on a three tiered flat monthly fee and lower commission rates, which mark a significant reduction in the commission rate applied under the original charging model, starting at 10% and dropping to around 6.5%based on revenues.
The new fees will provide an excellent opportunity for Merchants to trade more profitably on the site, and because Play.com no longer has its own retail offering, there will be a significantly greater opportunity for merchants to capture additional sales
Key Stats.
If you would like further information on selling on Rakuten’s Play.com please send an email to tim.tuer@play.com.
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