MaterialsXchange has launched its new digital marketplace for building materials
MaterialsXchange (MX) a digital marketplace for building material (LBM) products, has launched a new eCommerce platform available at materialsxchange.com. The updated marketplace offers a streamlined ordering process where suppliers can list products either as an “ask” or a “bid”. Buyers can receive alerts or order products directly. The technology, provided by Mickey, is designed to make the process for buying or selling wholesale and large-order more efficient. This includes live real-time order tracking and pricing transparency.
LBM suppliers can list their products. The MX platform auto-fill product descriptions and variants making the entire inventory setup fast and frictionless. Suppliers can also view all pending and shipped orders in one place, send invoices and receive automatic payouts. Furthermore, they can directly connect with buyers looking for their specific items. The new platform also provides a one-stop shop for buyers to source exactly what they need, place an order and see real-time shipping prices and delivery updates.
Disrupting the way industry has done business
Steve Coppola, Vice President, LENCO Supplies says “There is nothing that compares to the speed, efficiency, and simplicity of MX when buying or selling these products. Where else can you name your price, and have all of the shopping, paperwork, and shipping done for you. All with the click of a button?”
“Since launching in 2020, our focus has been on making it easier for LBM buyers to source the products they need on a single, digital platform,” said Mike Wisnefski, President, MaterialsXchange. “With our new updated platform, we are making it even easier for buyers and sellers to transact. All with complete transparency and at the click of a button. No longer do orders need to be handled in an antiquated way, but now the entire experience – from accepting digital payments via ACH, to automated sales tax calculation and remittances – makes the MX platform the easiest place for LBM transactions to take place.”
“This new platform will disrupt the way the industry has done business – and we’re hearing from users that is what they had been asking for all along,” said Ashley Boeckholt, Chief Revenue Officer, MaterialsXchange. “Sellers can also offer risk-free terms via our payment processing partner Balance, making it a win-win for both sides of the transaction.”
An automated and streamlined ordering experience
In September 2022, MaterialsXchange partnered with Mickey, a tech company that builds B2B e-commerce platforms and marketplaces. MX leveraged Mickey OS, the tech company’s backend operating system, to rebuild the platform. In addition, it helped to offer a truly automated and streamlined ordering experience.
Mickey’s Chief Technology Officer, Weston Stewart-Tennes, said, “Rebuilding MX platform to provide a better and more robust UX was paramount. We believe that both suppliers and buyers will find the updated marketplace even easier to use. LBM buyers can learn more about the products they are ordering – including the traditional lumber variants – along with the delivered price. We believe the technology powering the new MX platform will continue to disrupt this antiquated industry.”
The MaterialsXchange platform lists softwoods and panels – from Alder to Elm, as well as OSB and other LBM products. With the site’s ask/bid pricing structure, when a buyer negotiates a price, it’s matched with the transaction completed instantly. The prices are real-time market prices. Buyers see a complete and transparent final order that includes shipping and handling, and taxes.
In the UK, it’s been a good year for marketplaces and the retailers that use them. According to research from the Centre for Economic and Business Research (Cebr), UK retailers are turning over an estimated £282bn a year on online marketplaces. The number of retailers with a marketplace presence is up to 61%—almost 900,0000 businesses.
Enterprise Times: What this means for business.
Many analysts forecast the continued growth of marketplaces. Many manufacturers and retailers are excited by marketplaces because they offer new ways to serve customers. The MX marketplace offers the company to collaborate with third-party sellers. MX says its new eCommerce site, enhances its UX with streamlined, automated ordering processes and live order tracking features. These are all the key characteristics required for an effective marketplace. Organisations across B2B and B2C industries can launch marketplaces faster, grow bigger, faster. Furthermore, retailers can operate with confidence as they exceed rising customer expectations.
