Introduction

There is a company behind an online store. Anyone who wants to open an online store is therefore either already an entrepreneur, or well on the way to becoming one. Interested parties need skills in finance, business, taxes, regulations, servers, internet, web design, online stores, among others. These competencies may be available internally or brought in externally. For example, for taxes by the tax advisor, for all Internet issues by eBakery.

This series of articles is mainly about the online stores. And how to find the right one. Please note that the articles only offer an excerpt from our knowledge and we will be happy to advise you on the selection based on your personal situation and carry out the realization with you.
Development of the online market

The rise of the Internet over the past 20 years has shaken up a number of industries. The cards were redistributed. It was a prime example of Porter’s “5 Forces,” because in addition to the usual rivalry from rival competitors, there was suddenly the threat of entirely new suppliers.

The path to buying on the web was paved by online auction providers such as Ricardo and eBay. The novelty enticed and buying became an exciting game. By giving buyers an index of trustworthiness with rating options, online auctioneers grew the number of daring buyers. While the focus was originally on C2C and used goods, it quickly swung to B2C trading in new goods.

Other players emerged and served their niches. One expanded its niches and became known as Amazon – now a retailer of almost everything, started as a bookseller.

And Zalando has proven that even industries like shoe retailing are not spared from digital transformation. Who would have thought ten years ago that consumers would no longer buy such a highly personal good as shoes by trying them out in a local store, but would buy them with a click, virtually from their monitor?

Today’s situation

A market of opportunities

It may seem that everything has already been decided. The gold rush is over. Best claims awarded. But that is only half the truth. It has never been so easy to play along. Because there are completely new possibilities.
Examples:

• A designer does not have to set up and equip a store in Berlin*, pay rent and staff in order to have a narrow local target group as potential customers.
  He can simply open an online store and even have much more reach.
  *(or in another metropolis)
• A cabinetmaker’s shop, once threatened by cheap furniture markets for the masses, can bring itself back into people’s memories through an online catalog. Or win orders directly with custom-made products that can be clicked together online.
• An entrepreneur or gadget freak can import promising products from faraway countries and distribute them via online store and warehouse or dropshipping.

Online store selection

The worldwide offer of software for online stores is now enormous. On Softaculous alone, a commercial provider of web applications, you can find about 40 more or less usable webshops. But beware! However, the reviews there often only state how easy the initial installation of the software is for an experienced administrator.

Of course, you could just look at what software your nearest competitor is using and use the same. But that would be very naive. Because on the one hand, the competitor most likely has completely different internal structures, and on the other hand, no one has ever overtaken their competitor by doing exactly the same thing as them. Often, it is the online store and the merchandise management system that can be linked to it that can give you the decisive advantage.

But enough of the preface. eBakery stands for competent consulting and realization. We have found the following online stores to be good and would like to introduce them to you. Of course, this is not a substitute for personal counseling, but it can help you approach the subject.

• Shopware
• Magento (coming soon)
• JTL Shop (will follow soon)
• PlentyMarkets (coming soon)
• Pixi (coming soon)
• Prestashop (coming soon)
• Woo-Commerce (coming soon)

Finally, here is a summary with overview and conclusion. (follows shortly)

Ali Oukassi

Mohamed Ali Oukassi ist Gründer und Inhaber von eBakery. Er hat mehr als zwölf Jahre Erfahrung in der E-Commerce Welt. Mit seinem Team aus Experten kann er jeden Bereich abdecken und lebt den Full-Service-Gedanken, egal ob es um die Erstellung / Umstellung eines Shops, die Berartung hinsichtlich des richtigen Shopsystems, Marketingfragen, SEO oder auch das Thema Social Media Integration geht. Gut vernetzt und mit einem leistungsstarken Personal im Rücken, nimmt er sich jeder Herausforderung im E-Commerce an.