A platform that allows multiple vendors to upload, manage, and sell their products while being provided with a dedicated admin panel for them. Each vendor is enabled to manage its internal team. The platform supports corporate buyers, companies that can purchase products from preferred vendors. Within the platform, buyers are enabled to assign their employees to place orders on behalf of their organization.
To ensure seamless transactions, the platform uses Stripe, one of the leading payment systems, to generate invoices and handle payment processing.
The platform operates as a B2B eCommerce marketplace and multivendor platform, enabling companies to buy from or sell to other businesses. The platform is also designed with specific potential and flexibility to support B2C transactions.
Develop a custom B2B order flow with invoicing that seamlessly integrates with Stripe while handling complex pricing, bulk orders, and payment reconciliation. Further challenges were ensuring accurate invoice generation, tax compliance, and a smooth user experience.
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Frontend: NextJS, ReactJS
Backend: NodeJS, MedusaJS
Platforms: AWS, Hetzner, Coolify
B2B eCommerce marketplaces have been proven to be an ideal way of connecting businesses, especially those buying in bulk or looking to simplify purchasing by referring to multiple vendors at once and in one place. In practice, B2B transactions typically happen on a bigger scale than in the B2C eCommerce marketplaces, with payments processed mostly through digital channels. The value of B2B online transactions goes beyond the B2C market, which adds to its eCommerce worldwide interest.
Additionally, B2B buying decisions have been shifting greatly toward a buyer-centric digital model, and this change has shown to be rising over the past couple of years.
In 2022, 65% of B2B companies worldwide offered full e-commerce capabilities, which was an increase from 53% recorded in early 2021, with 60% of B2B buyers indicating they are open to purchasing via digital marketplaces. Afterward, Gartner predicted that by 2025, 80% of B2B sales interactions between suppliers and buyers will occur through digital channels.
80% of B2B sales interactions between suppliers and buyers will occur through digital channels
There are multiple benefits of B2B eCommerce platforms. From complete vendor control, product management features, multilingual and multi-currency options, to secure payment gateways and inventory management. These platforms empower sellers with enhanced control, flexibility, and visibility to manage complex transactions and bulk orders. Through B2B online marketplace models, sellers can streamline operations, strengthen buyer relationships, and expand their market presence.
Currently, the US is one of the largest and most mature global markets in terms of B2B eCommerce adoption, while the number of European businesses discovering its benefits continues to rise.
Beyond the current leaders in the B2B eCommerce market like Alibaba, Amazon Business, EWorldTrade, TradeKey, and Mercateo, offering bulk pricing, verified suppliers, and tools to simplify global trade, there are many businesses actively developing their own marketplaces to stay competitive and meet evolving digital demands.
Our Europe-based client, an eCommerce marketplace platform in expansion, recognized the potential for growth and improvement within its services and general online businesses. The initiation was rooted in the idea of elevating their services to a higher level, with a clear vision for service modernization, cutting-edge technology implementation, and streamlining operations, all focused on enhancing delivery for their customers.
To meet the needs of their complex products and services, the client chose MedusaJS, a powerful open-source headless e-commerce platform, as the main technology. Recognizing its fresh possibilities but challenges that may occur, the client turned to Inviggo for expert software development and engineering support. Our team of three was dedicated to the project, planning the B2B flow from scratch, ensuring a smooth integration of MedusaJS.
Complex Custom Order Flow – Developing a highly flexible order system that supports bulk purchases, tiered pricing, and multi-step approvals while ensuring a seamless user experience for B2B buyers.
Dynamic Translations for Dynamic Data – Implementing a translation system that supports product details and other dynamic content in multiple languages while maintaining accuracy and performance.
Stripe Integration for Invoices & Payments – Managing invoice-based transactions, handling partial payments, and ensuring smooth reconciliation between orders and payments within the custom flow.
Dynamic Shipping – A challenging aspect due to varying product sizes, weights, and quantities, requiring a flexible system that can dynamically calculate shipping costs based on different factors.
Additional challenge for buyers - Implementing a buyer onboarding flow within which they can add products only after entering a valid VAT number. Additionally, superadmins must approve the account before the buyer can access and use the platform.
Additional challenge for vendors - A Stripe onboarding process is required. Once completed, the account must be reviewed and approved by superadmins before the vendor can start using the platform.
MedusaJS – Chosen as the foundation for its robust eCommerce capabilities and high customizability, allowing us to tailor the order flow, invoicing, and vendor management to B2B needs.
Next.js – Used for the buyer-facing frontend, ensuring fast performance and strong SEO optimization to improve product discoverability.
Vendor Admin Panel (ReactJS) – A standalone React application, as SEO was not a concern, providing vendors with an intuitive dashboard to manage their products, orders, and invoices.
Super Admin Panel (ReactJS) – Built on Medusa's default admin panel but significantly extended to accommodate advanced platform management features.
Stripe – Integrated for invoice-based payments, handling transactions, partial payments, and reconciliation efficiently.
The marketplace supports multi-vendor orders, allowing buyers to add products from different vendors to a single cart while managing separate orders behind the scenes. Payments and invoices are processed through Stripe, ensuring a seamless checkout experience. The system includes order verification, email notifications for each step, and the ability to cancel orders when applicable.
Vendors can set quantity-based pricing and bulk purchase discounts, encouraging larger transactions. Pricing is dynamically calculated based on the selected quantities, ensuring buyers always see the most relevant price.
The marketplace integrates MeiliSearch for fast and accurate product searches. Products are organized into dynamic categories, making it easier for buyers to find what they need.
All static and dynamic content, including product information, is translated using LibTranslate. This ensures a fully localized experience tailored to each buyer’s preferred language.
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Featured Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich
