B2B is one of the most commonly used terms in business. This page explains what it means, how it compares to B2C and D2C, and what a B2B marketplace or platform looks like in practice.
B2B meaning: what does B2B stand for?
B2B stands for Business-to-Business. B2B full form: Business to Business. It describes any commercial transaction or relationship where one business sells products or services to another business — not to individual consumers.
A software company selling a CRM to a retail chain is B2B. A wholesaler selling bulk ingredients to a restaurant is B2B. A manufacturer selling components to an assembly plant is B2B.
The defining feature: the buyer is an organisation making a purchase decision, not an individual consumer.
B2B vs B2C: what's the difference?
| B2B (Business to Business) | B2C (Business to Consumer) | |
|---|---|---|
| Buyer | A business or organisation | An individual consumer |
| Decision process | Multiple stakeholders, longer cycle | Individual decision, often impulse |
| Order size | Larger, bulk | Smaller, individual |
| Relationship | Ongoing contract or partnership | Transactional |
| Price | Negotiated, tiered, volume-based | Fixed, listed publicly |
| Examples | Salesforce, SAP, wholesale distributors | Amazon, Zara, Netflix |
B2B vs D2C
D2C (Direct-to-Consumer) means a brand sells directly to end consumers, bypassing retailers. B2B means selling to businesses.
Many manufacturers and brands run both:
- B2B channel → sell in bulk to distributors, retailers, resellers at wholesale price
- D2C channel → sell directly to consumers via their own website at retail price
The D2C channel removes the middleman margin. The B2B channel drives volume. Running both is called a multi-channel or omnichannel strategy.
B2B full form in different contexts
The “B” and “2” format is used across commerce models:
| Term | Full form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| B2B | Business to Business | Businesses selling to businesses |
| B2C | Business to Consumer | Businesses selling to consumers |
| D2C / DTC | Direct to Consumer | Brands selling direct, no middleman |
| C2C | Consumer to Consumer | Individuals selling to individuals |
| B2B2C | Business to Business to Consumer | A business sells via another business to reach consumers |
| B2G | Business to Government | Businesses selling to public sector |
What is a B2B marketplace?
A B2B marketplace is a platform where multiple businesses sell products or services to other businesses. Unlike a B2C marketplace (where individual consumers shop), a B2B marketplace is designed for professional procurement:
- Bulk pricing and volume discounts
- Quote requests and negotiated pricing
- Purchase order management
- Net payment terms (e.g. Net 30, Net 60)
- Multi-user accounts (a procurement team, not one buyer)
- Verified business accounts (no anonymous buyers)
- Catalogue management for large SKU counts
B2B marketplace examples
| Platform | Category |
|---|---|
| Alibaba | Global wholesale and manufacturing |
| Faire | Wholesale for independent retailers |
| ThomasNet | Industrial components and manufacturing |
| Procurify | Procurement software and marketplace |
| Tundra | Zero-fee wholesale marketplace |
| Knowde | Chemical and polymer marketplace |
| NamX / Tradyl | Regional B2B wholesale |
Build a B2B marketplace with Tradly
Tradly supports B2B marketplace configuration out of the box:
- Business account verification — require sellers and buyers to submit business credentials before trading
- Volume pricing tiers — configure price breaks per quantity on any listing. Docs: Pricing
- Commission and fee structure — set platform fees per category or per seller tier. Docs: Commission
- Payment gateway — Stripe B2B flows, invoice payments, and custom gateway support. Docs: Payments
- Catalogue management — bulk product import, variant management, and attributes per category
- Multi-user accounts — buyer organisations can have multiple team members with different permissions
Simple and FREE. Launch your project today!
- Launch Marketplaces, Online Storefronts, Booking Apps, Classifieds, Directories, Partner Portals, App Stores, etc.
- Tradly pricing starts with ZERO. You pay only when you grow.
- Free No-code Integrations, No-Code Editor
Free B2B & Marketplace Templates
B2B & Marketplace Templates
See AllChecklist from start to end on what you need to build a marketplace using Tradly Platform.
Tradly Platform solution is catered to different groups separately
- For developers: Headless API solution. Using the API solution, developers can build apps on top of it.
- For no-code creators: A simple toggle based SuperAdmin Panel to configure features in the already pre-built apps (also called as storefront, front end apps, templated apps).
For developers
- Signup for a free account
- Get the API keys in the SuperAdmin > Settings > API section = Refer the API reference to start building the app
- Optionally Fork Open source app starter Kits
5 Steps for no-code creators and builders
Choose the templates Website or Mobile Apps
Do the branding customisation & business informations on launchpad
Prototype your app using our SuperAdmin builder and Visualise your app through test apps.
Launch
- Web App: By default when you register, you will get the production URL to use the app. And you can add custom domain.
- Mobile App: When you are ready to launch, Subscribe to our plans and get a white label app build
Advanced Informations
A. UI Customisation via SuperAdmin
Settings > App Customistion
- App Name
- App Primary & Secondary Colour
- App Icon
- Splash launch images
- Onboarding images, Onboarding Text
- Registration Text
- Sell Icon (optional)
- App title in Home Screen (Default will be app name) And others
B. Platform Fundamentals
You must configure the below things for the system to be able to open accounts, submit listings and make purchases.
Configure accounts: Settings > accounts(categories, attributes)
Configure listings: Settings > listings (Setting up listings information to be collected. Categories, attributes)
Stripe/other payment gateways configuration
Configure revenue model, commissions: Settings > commissions OR Settings > Subscriptions OR Settings > Special Fees
C. Integrations
App integrations
- Chat setup via Firebase ,
- Optionally referral / sharing features via Branch
- Optionally later legal informations (privacy, terms, etc)
System integrations
- Configure email if you want the emails to be whitelisted
- Configure domain if you want good deliverability of emails
- Configure Google Maps if you have location specific features
Website Integrations
Dozens of website integrations to help you with marketing, analytics and products. [Check here](https://tradly.app/integrations)Simple and FREE. Launch your project today!
- Launch Marketplaces, Online Storefronts, Booking Apps, Classifieds, Directories, Partner Portals, App Stores, etc.
- Tradly pricing starts with ZERO. You pay only when you grow.
- Free No-code Integrations, No-Code Editor
- More about Headless Commerce API
- Open source Repositories - iOS, Android, Web App
- Youtube Video series on how to build a marketplace
- VIDEO: Choosing the right stack and how to approach different solution
- Read: Why it’s better to use pre-built solution like Tradly
Also see: D2C Meaning · How to Create a Marketplace Website · Agriculture Marketplace · Commerce Order Engine