I'm currently selling through Wildberries and Ozon, but they've raised their commissions and logistics fees several times already this year. It's getting unclear whether there'll even be any profit left. Maybe it's better to open my own site or adapt some other way?
Marketplace commissions really do sting, but bailing out completely to your own site is risky - you'll have to build it up yourself and pay for ads, which'll cost you too. Better to mix it: keep marketplaces as a source of traffic and steady demand, but at the same time build your own sales channels (social media, your own online store, even a subscriber base). That way you're not dependent on one service and can quickly rebalance if commissions become totally unbearable. The key thing is to watch your math: calculate clearly at what commission rates you're still in the black, and if the marketplace crosses that line, either raise your prices or cut costs on sourcing.
Do you calculate your product cost including all these fees, or do you just look at the commission percentage?
here's the thing - marketplaces really are getting more expensive, but it's risky to drop them completely. your own website takes months to gain traction, and you get almost no traffic until you actually spend money on ads. it becomes a catch-22: no customers, no money for promotion. marketplaces give you a ready-made audience, even if they do charge for it.
better to think about how to offset the price increase instead. you can recalculate your cost and bump up prices a bit - customers are willing to pay more for convenience. or focus on products with good margins and ditch the unprofitable ones. third option - check out other platforms (Yandex.Market, Avito for B2B, your own social media channels) so you're not stuck depending on just two. mixing different sales channels is cheaper and safer than putting all your eggs in one basket. and yeah, your own website makes sense, but as a supplement, not a replacement.
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