Selling on bol, explained
Here's how to start selling on bol.
Maybe you've thought about it before, or tried it and it didn't quite take off the way you'd hoped. We'll show you how the largest marketplace in the Netherlands works, and how you can take your first steps today, for free.
The opportunity
The customers are already there.
bol is the largest marketplace in the Netherlands and Belgium. You don't need to build a webshop or drive your own traffic. You list your product and pay bol a commission when you sell. And more than half of everything that sells goes through ordinary sellers.
- 6.3 billion
- euros in trading volume on bol per year
- 13 million
- customers shop on bol every month
- More than half
- of that goes through ordinary sellers
What sells
On bol you can sell almost anything.
From electronics to baby products: bol has 28 marketplaces and more than 13,000 product categories. The revenue is spread widely, so there's a market for nearly every product.
28
marketplaces
13.000+
product categories
And over 80% of sales fall between 11 and 50 euros: you don't need to come up with an expensive product to take part.
How revenue is spread across the marketplaces (scroll for all 28)
- Electronics17.7%
- Household8.7%
- Toys7.7%
- Personal Care6.5%
- Computers6.1%
- Home & Living5.4%
- DIY & Tools4.5%
- Baby Products4.2%
- Health Products3.9%
- Games3.5%
- Cooking & Dining3.4%
- Garden3.1%
- Pets3.1%
- Sporting Goods3.1%
- Beauty2.6%
- Office & School2.3%
- Camping & Outdoor2.2%
- Men's Fashion2.1%
- Women's Fashion2%
- Bikes & Accessories1.7%
- Car & Motorcycle1.6%
- Travel Luggage & Travel Accessories1.5%
- Food & Drink1%
- Adult & Erotica0.6%
- Christmas0.5%
- Kids' Fashion0.4%
- Music0.4%
- Movies & TV Series0.3%
Two ways to sell
The buy box, or your own brand.
On bol there are broadly two ways to sell. The difference shapes your control, your competition and how you get found.
Buy box
You sell alongside other sellers under an existing product page.
Upside: the page already has reviews and visitors, so you're off to a quick start.
Downside: you compete mainly on price and have little say over the page.
Your own brand
most opportunityYour own product page under your own brand, with the title and price in your hands.
Upside: full control, and you build something that can grow.
Downside: more work up front, because getting found is on you.
Your own brand takes more preparation, but it gives you the most room to grow and stand out.
In practice
These brands started small, and grew big.
LifeGoods
on bol since 2016Started with standalone household and lifestyle products under its own labels and grew into one of the largest private labels on bol. Today it is active in dozens of categories.
Strong in
528
products
66
categories
46.000+
reviews
Market leader in SUP boards
market share by revenue
- 1. LifeGoods43.8%
- 2. Supper16%
- 3. Brixy10.8%
- 4. Bestway5.7%
- 5. Aqua Marina4.2%
From experience
Is selling on bol still worth it?
Tim and Lars started from home in 2020 with 4,000 euros. Today their brand Nuvance ranks in bol's top 50, with 5 million euros in revenue. In the video they show how they did it, and what's possible for you.
What it takes
The mistakes that make sellers fail.
Selling on bol is more than putting a product online. Most sellers get tripped up by the same mistakes. Knowing them already puts you ahead. Avoiding them puts you in front.
How you learn it
Good knowledge doesn't have to be expensive.
Many sellers think they have to pay thousands of euros for it. At MarktMentor you learn it in the knowledge base: topic by topic, from professionals who work with it every day. And you can start for free today.
Prefer it step by step? The guided learning path takes you from your first research to your first sale. Your guide is Rutger Nijenhuis, active on bol since 2019: he's sold himself, helped other sellers and run their stores.
Take your first steps on bol today.
The knowledge base, the guided learning path and the market data are ready for you. Free during your trial, and you can get started today.
Prefer to look around on your own first? Besides MarktMentor, there are other free ways to learn too.