Amazon and eBay rival on vendor recruitment push

Startup OnBuy aims to feature one million products by its November customer launch

An online marketplace aiming to rival Amazon and eBay has launched a vendor recruitment drive.

OnBuy, which was established earlier in the year with the backing of system builder Centerprise, is hoping to launch formally in November in time for the Christmas rush, and aims to have one million products featured on its database by then.

The online retailer is set to sell everything from IT equipment and homewares through to toys and craft materials when it opens for business on 1 November, and claims to want to snatch market share from giants Amazon and eBay.

OnBuy says vendors can enjoy lower monthly subscription costs to be featured on the site, and insists the cut it takes from each transaction will be either the same or less than Amazon.

Small businesses and consumers are the target market for OnBuy, which claims to have had a lot of interest from vendors wanting to be featured on the site.

Only businesses will be able to sell through the marketplace, as OnBuy is set to offer what it describes as a security blanket for buyers in case of transaction issues.

Cas Paton, OnBuy's managing director, said: "Only businesses can sell with us because we offer protection guarantee.

"We will protect the consumer when they buy as there is a lot of trust involved. Some are worried that if they buy from a small vendor there might be a problem with customer service and returns. We will offer a security blanket for the consumer so they know they get protection.

"We only want to work with business [sellers] as there is a much higher risk with consumers."