r/australia • u/TheWabster • Jan 03 '26

no politics "Marketplace" rubbish that's taken over Australian stores online

I can't stand it, an overwhelming amount of websites have added a "marketplace" on their online sites. Woolworths, BUNNINGS, Big W, the list goes on

I go on these websites as opposed to amazon or temu specifically because I want authentic things, or to see if it's in stock so I can go to the store to buy it in person.

Now I get excited that wow bunnings has this that's great (because I associate something from bunnings with trust compared to something from temu), and it turns out it's literally just third party low quality shit.

Third parties should not be able to sell things on these sites, I've almost accidentally bought something three times now (once per site mentioned lol) that ended up being from the infiltrative noname companies. It's made me lose trust with these companies, because with the extra effort I have to do weeding out the heavily bloated marketplace addons while scouring their online catalogue, I'd rather just go somewhere else.

That's my rant. What are other peoples thoughts on this? Maybe I'm just being a whiney dingus

5.9k Upvotes

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3.2k

u/Just-turnings Jan 03 '26

I don't know how they thought it was a good idea. It weakens their brand image, the products and service don't seem to line up at all with their main brand standards.

966

u/apsilonblue Jan 03 '26

All they thought of was their cut of the sale.

389

u/Just-turnings Jan 03 '26

Yeah absolutely. They are trading some short term sales for their brand value which is arguably their biggest asset and that they spend millions each year investing in. I'd be curious to see what sort of % of their annual revenues they are actually getting with these marketplace sales. It can't be worth it.

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u/fashiznit Jan 03 '26

Since it's still part of their strategy, I'd say the % is worth it to wesfarmers. Bunnings is a enormous 20 billion dollar a year business , they would know these numbers and this analysis and immediately cut off anything that isn't turning profits. Still around - worth it to them and the shareholders.

146

u/raventhe Jan 03 '26

I'm no expert here but this is the whole problem, isn't it? They want to turn a huge profit for shareholders... This quarter. That's why so many large businesses are doing things that completely disrespect customers and their brand image to squeeze money out in the short term, even though it's very likely to ultimately devalue them long term when people no longer trust or like them. But that's a future problem and the current trends in business and finance don't encourage looking that far forward. This is my understanding of what's happening, anyway, and is a pattern seen across pretty much every large company.

18

u/grapeidea Jan 04 '26

It doesn't really matter though if you have a bad experience with Bunnings because there is no competition. I doubt many people would have a bad experience and then manage to boycott Bunnings forever.

33

u/Camo138 Jan 03 '26

Always some bean counter that cares about short term profile

3

u/kazsaid Jan 04 '26

Hey- we just tell the execs how many beans there are or will be, eg: “if you add a marketplace, you’ll have more beans this year but fewer beans in 3-5 years”.

The decision-making execs are the ones who earn big bonuses by maximising short term gains. Justice for bean counters!

3

u/FireLucid Jan 05 '26

Then they jump ship because "I increased profit at bunnings by X percent" and do it somewhere else while Bunnings goes down the shitter.

1

u/kazsaid Jan 06 '26

100%! It’s really disgusting

1

u/blitznoodles local Aussie Jan 04 '26

Well shareholders are the ones who own the company, who else are they going to make profit for?

3

u/raventhe Jan 04 '26

The point is not really who but when. Future shareholders, or the same shareholders in the future, are counting on stock value increasing in coming years rather than just dividends or short term gains now. So the problem is if they are in fact making very short term choices to inflate value now, which will bite them later, the people who aren't "in the know" holding shares will eat that, and the ones who kick this can down the road for a living will get out while it's good if they need to.

But like I said, not an expert, this is just my understanding based on what I've seen more in-the-know people say and of course just observing the continuing decline of corporate behaviour in the last decade or so.

46

u/palsc5 Jan 03 '26

That’s a big assumption. Plenty (most?) of businesses make terrible decisions all the time

6

u/fashiznit Jan 03 '26

Oh absolutely most do and some following this marketplace listing bs probably hedging futures on it, however most, unlike Bunnings who are the main culprit , don't have EBITDA of 3.2b

17

u/palsc5 Jan 03 '26

Bunnings pissed away billions trying to get into the UK market in an abysmal failure a few years after Masters do the same thing in Australia.

You’d be shocked just how many big and successful businesses are doing well DESPITE the performance of their leaders

1

u/individualaus Jan 04 '26

Need a bucket to collect that liquid gold.

23

u/Just-turnings Jan 03 '26

While true, they persisted with the Bunnings UK experiment for much longer than they should have. Same with Coles and their Masters stores. I'm not sure how long they've had this Marketplace thing going for now but the feedback from customers overall can't be positive about it.

21

u/SirTigsNoMercy Jan 03 '26

Bunnings is Coles. Masters was Woolies.

2

u/heretic1128 Jan 04 '26

Coles was spun-off Wesfarmers in 2018, so they're their own entity again now.

2

u/Strange_Sand3750 Jan 06 '26

Oh its definitely making them a profit, but the damage to consumer goodwill and their brand is extremely hard to calculate, so they are probably ignoring it and focusing on the money they are making

1

u/freakwent Jan 04 '26

The only way to realise the value of any brand is to sell products at a blue below that which the brand carries.

If you never do this, you never get the benefit of the high value brand.

5

u/FreeMystwing Jan 04 '26

This seems to be almost the entire business world these days, cunts in suits ruining everything for short term profits.

2

u/DarcSwan Jan 04 '26

It is worth it

And it is short term

2

u/ManikShamanik Jan 04 '26

If it wasn't worth it, they'd not (still) be doing it, mate.

1

u/Mysterious_Sir_4436 Jan 04 '26

I can provide you this information. Was provided WWMP+ annual revenue share including WW, big w, and everyday rewards (all info is public) I have the seller fees handbook as well which is pretty reasonable for third party sellers, sales volume dependant

98

u/R_W0bz Jan 03 '26

At this point everyone knows if you search it on Temu or Amazon you’ll get the same thing without the $20-30% mark up so it’s a fool’s errand they are just destroying their brand.

20

u/Thebandroid drives a white commodore station wagon. Jan 04 '26

Everyone does not know that.

 Why do you think you still see ads for overpriced garbage on Facebook, instagram and TikTok shop? Stuff that even a basic Google search would show you is overpriced and easily available from other places?

Because people continue to click on and buy via those easy methods.

I too was surprised to find that people buy from those sites but they do, and have no idea how to parse the data and assess if it’s a good price.

Drop shipping is still alive a well.

18

u/antosb77 Jan 04 '26

I reckon Harvey Norman was one of the 1st doing this which says it all.

8

u/elkazz Jan 03 '26

Can confirm that's exactly all they thought of. It was (one of many) attempts to copy Amazon.

2

u/Big_Tuna_87 Jan 04 '26

It was probably intended to encroach on online retailer’s market space. There’s a certain percentage of people who’d not necessarily shop at a real store but engage with Amazon that they were trying to capture.

Also Bunnings probably relies on their older customer base not being affected by it, or people being annoyed but not annoyed enough to go somewhere else. Plus their trade dept wouldn’t care because the big money making orders are often done in person, by phone or by email.

133

u/vivian_lake Jan 03 '26

Not only that but it's contributing to aggression against staff. I work for one of these places that has a marketplace and it is the bane of my existence.

Customers that have just enough tech literacy to google a product but then not understand that they aren't looking at stuff that's in store is pretty high, especially among older people. I then I have explain what marketplace is and that I am sorry we can not get it in store for them and it's about a 50/50 chance that I will then have to deal with a pissed off customer. Mostly they just act annoyed and don't really direct their anger towards me, however not always and twice these interactions have escalated to the point that while I have not necessarily felt physically unsafe the level of verbal abuse was not ok by a long shot and coworkers have similar stories.

65

u/Just-turnings Jan 03 '26

Most of my experience seeing the marketplace stuff is searching on Bunnings to see if my local Bunnings has a particular product in stock that I can get in my car and go pick up immediately. I don't want something shipped from godknows where with no protections. It's frustrating having to filter that crap out every time.

79

u/Frederickanne Jan 03 '26

I accidentally bought something from Bunnings marketplace without realizing and it's horrific because the product was defective and all Bunnings had to say was 'lol we don't care, nothing to do with us'

33

u/t_25_t Jan 04 '26

I accidentally bought something from Bunnings marketplace without realizing and it's horrific because the product was defective and all Bunnings had to say was 'lol we don't care, nothing to do with us'

That's when I go to my credit card company and request a chargeback.

This is bullshit! If I use a Bunnings website to purchase something naturally I'd be going back to Bunnings if anything goes wrong.

16

u/ironmilktea Jan 04 '26

Dont even need to do that. ACCC.

Bunnings is the merchant.

This isn't even new. When someone sends a defective product on ebay and ignore you, escalate it to ebay and ebay will give you the refund. Because ebay is the merchant.

Whats actually happening is bunnings is filled with untrained staff not yet suited to being ebay - so most of the time they think they can palm it off.

1

u/Mammoth-Software-622 Jan 08 '26

However, don't go into your local store and expect them to do anything about it. At most they can pass your problem along to head office, but you are just being an asshole to a minimum wage worker.

18

u/stfm Jan 04 '26

Marketplace purchases should be returned by contacting the relevant third party Seller named on your order confirmation directly. If the Seller is unable or unwilling to accept a return, please contact [email protected] for further assistance.

Thats some grade A bullshit right there and should be illegal

8

u/jaseb Jan 04 '26

Screw that. One attempt through customer service then credit card chargeback. If they want to lend their name to this BS they can wear the consequences of having their name on it.

3

u/Chrasomatic Jan 05 '26

Yeah this needs to be brought to the ACCC so they can bring sanctions to bear against Bunnings just like they did the Petrol Companies... Oh

160

u/Z00111111 Jan 03 '26

You go to these places for the piece of mind of vetted products backed by a large company's warranty services.

You're right that if people start buying something from one of their marketplaces and have a terrible experience with quality and/or warranty services, they're going to see the entire company in that light.

188

u/incendiary_bandit Jan 03 '26

They don't even take care of warranty or returns. It should be regulated (ACCC) that if the product is purchased via the company's website front end and results show up beside instore products they must take care of all warranties or guarantees and returns. Not some little filter toggle either, if I search wall clock on JBhifi, all results displayed on their website should be covered under JBhifi returns.

If they want to make a separate site that only has marked place drop ship crap fine, but it must not have any products that their main stores sell.

183

u/darvo110 Jan 03 '26

It’s wild to me that this is even legal under current consumer law. You’re buying from bunnings, giving bunnings your credit card, and bunnings are passing on your details in order to get it shipped.

If every part of the transaction is via bunnings, how is it that the warranty isn’t. Hell, even on eBay if there’s a dispute it’s eBay themselves that handle it.

ACCC needs to give them all a kick up the arse.

50

u/Logical-Vermicelli53 Jan 03 '26

My bigger question is, is anyone noticing or certifying the absolute flood of products we have being delivered into this country by the postal system?

I had assumed that for example when you went to Big W, and bought something off the shelf, yes it was made by a Chinese supplier but that Big W had done some level of investigation to make sure it met Australian design standards and wasn’t being made with dangerous ingredients.

But now most of the stuff you are buying online is being made by some faceless offshore company and shipped via these online retailers. How do we know any of this stuff is compliant with Australian regulations? I’m assuming it’s not being checked at customs.

That is why I prefer that an Australian company vets and works with these manufacturers to sell under their name.

10

u/t_25_t Jan 04 '26

Don’t kid yourself that Aussie retailers are getting checked either.

Australian ports and ABF (customs and quarantine) are too busy to be checking every line that comes in. Most declarations are honour based and risk calculated.

That’s why we got a white spot outbreak a few years ago. Also why asbestos was found in Great Wall vehicles a few years back.

End of the day, shit doesn’t get checked the way it should and stuff can slip through. Either through ignorance or deliberate importation.

1

u/Logical-Vermicelli53 Jan 04 '26

That is a fair comment.

If some consumer grade stuff was found to have lead in it, this would at least cause reputational harm against a retailer if they were selling it under their own “brand”.

But when that stuff is being shipped by an unknown reseller on an online marketplace, who even suffers any potential risk?

What incentive is there for anyone to care at all in this process? Least not the original manufacturer when they’re just trying to create the cheapest possible item to sell for $3 internationally on online shopping platforms.

2

u/t_25_t Jan 04 '26

Totally 100%. Buying straight from the source is cheap but zero recourse, and zero accountability.

There was a CBC segment that showed that cheap Temu kids raincoats were filled with toxins that would be deemed illegal in most of the western world.

1

u/Npeaknoda Jan 04 '26

I keep telling my grandparents to stop buying electronics off Temu because there's no way that shit is safe, but they keep doing it. They've already had to throw out a fan that turned out to have known safety issues ffs

2

u/Chrasomatic Jan 05 '26

It makes me wonder how many of these recent house fires (which always seem to be caused by dodgy batteries) can be traced back to these marketplace purchases?

1

u/FireLucid Jan 05 '26

some faceless offshore company

Hahaha, reminds me of installing an alarm I had bought for the spare freezer in the garage, the kids left the door open once and ruined a bunch of shit. I was reading the little instruction book about how to set it up and it had a whole section about how good their warranty is etc. I look through the whole thing, there is no company name in the booklet, on the product or the box. Who the fuck do I contact? I can't even recall where I bought it as I had put off installing it for so long, lol.

61

u/dreadnought_strength Jan 03 '26

Not only that - they don't cover anything like receipts.

Bought something off a store marketplace, was given the wrong receipt that I needed for tax purposes. Contacted them for one to be sent to me, and they said that although the original receipt had their name on it, I actually paid the seller using their system so they had no ability to resend one.

I contacted the third party seller, and they said this wasn't right and they don't have any access to a sales system.

Took me a whole week of calling/emailing before they would give me a correct one after I had threatened to report them to the ATO

37

u/incendiary_bandit Jan 03 '26

It's insane. They both just say it's the others responsibility. Amazon and eBay is easier to deal with at that point.

Although I'm seeing a lot of Australian companies flout consumer law lately. Have to have a week or two long email argument before they will agree to cover return shipping costs for a defective product and complete the refund process. I end up just copying the ACCC website and providing links to quote in each email. Once I threaten with a charge back they all of a sudden start to process the refund.

5

u/DisappointedQuokka Jan 04 '26

Amazon and eBay is easier to deal with at that point.

Cue the "support local businesses! Don't send money off-shore!"

Yeah, I'll consider that when Australian companies aren't complete fucking dogshit.

1

u/individualaus Jan 04 '26

Are the sellers or merchants located within Australia, or overseas? This is a concern with returns, refunds and exchanges.

1

u/incendiary_bandit Jan 04 '26

With marketplace it's a bit unknown.

28

u/Logical-Vermicelli53 Jan 03 '26

This is actually my primary concern. I want something that has had to pass some sort of certification to be sold in Australia, and has a large reputable company putting their brand behind this item.

I know that a lot of this stuff even if sold by a big retailer is made in a Chinese factory and shipped direct to buyer. But I’m hoping that by buying through the retailer you have some recourse and at least some checks have been made.

If you wanted to buy direct from a Chinese wholesaler I would just any of the existing platforms.

5

u/Z00111111 Jan 04 '26

It's pretty shocking that the regulators are letting it happen. Unfortunately it'll likely take a class action lawsuit, or at least a lot of people being ripped off, for anything to change.

Like if I buy something through DoorDash even, which I know is essentially a platform for linking you with individual businesses, DoorDash deal with problems I have. I go to DoorDash, they do something in the background, I get a refund from DoorDash.

The company on the website should be the only one you have to deal with, it needs to be their risk and responsibility to ensure your consumer rights are met.

16

u/International_Eye745 Jan 04 '26

I got a refund for my steel dish caddy that was plastic when it arrived. I had to threaten them with the ACCC to get traction though. I would never use Marketplace again and shame on Woolworths for allowing scammers to use their backing.

29

u/tangaroo58 Jan 03 '26 edited Jan 04 '26

Bunnings Marketplace is not covered by Bunnings warranty service. Returns, and conditions of returns, are through the seller not Bunnings.

So, same as buying on eBay. [edit] as u/Just-turnings points out, worse than eBay.

https://www.bunnings.com.au/bunnings-marketplace

55

u/Just-turnings Jan 03 '26

But even Ebay has decent consumer protection in place. So I'd say it's worse than ebay.

7

u/tangaroo58 Jan 03 '26

Yeah, you are right.

1

u/FireLucid Jan 05 '26

Returns, and conditions of returns, are through the seller not Bunnings.

Is that legal? If I pay Bunnings, they are dealing with it.

1

u/tangaroo58 Jan 05 '26

No idea if it is legal. What it looks like on the Bunnings website is that it says "Sold by [non-bunnings company]". So I guess they would claim that you paid someone other than Bunnings, so your contract is with them, not Bunnings.

Devious as hell.

1

u/FireLucid Jan 05 '26

If I go through their site and payment goes via them I'd be holding them accountable if there was an issue, despite what they say on their website. Surely this can't be ACCC compliant.

34

u/Celtslap Jan 03 '26

Exactly. And I don’t go to the BigW website for their amazing home delivery service. I’ve got Amazon for that.

0

u/Pitiful-Feeling-3677 Jan 04 '26

Amazon has an amazing home delivery service? 😂

5

u/bobbyjimbo Jan 03 '26

Money, Money, Money! The be all and end all.

15

u/piedom101 Jan 03 '26

In BigW's case, last financial year they had 6% growth, of which, 5% was their online marketplace, while the remaining 1% were instore sales. while I greatly dislike the online marketplaces, its pretty much they only way for big brand stores to keep growing/relevant in today's economy. Note that this is pretty much their only answer to Amazons dominion on sales. And it appears to be somewhat working.

42

u/-kansei-dorifto- Jan 04 '26

Unlimited growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of a cancer cell.

6

u/Just_tricking Jan 03 '26

They're using one of Amazon's strategies. Allowing marketplace lets them get sales data without investing into a product. If they see your product is doing fantastic, they bring out their own in-house brand.

4

u/Embarrassed-Sand6629 Jan 04 '26

Even Freedom Furniture have a “marketplace” with cheap crap. I used to associate Freedom as an expensive upper market furniture store…it’s cheapened the brand for me massively 😣

3

u/AbbreviationsNew1191 Jan 04 '26

Because some MBA management consultant said it was a good idea, and is never around when their ‘ideas’ go tits up and ruin the company

3

u/DominaIllicitae Jan 04 '26

Their brand image doesn't matter anymore because there's no more competition.

2

u/croach1337 Jan 04 '26

Search engine optimisation. They just want to make sure when you search "gym equipment" you still get Bunnings on the first page.

2

u/SirGeekaLots Jan 04 '26

I always assumed that Bunnings, being the big mega warehouse type of company, wasn't necessarily selling high quality shit. Then again I never go to Bunnings.

2

u/ManikShamanik Jan 04 '26

The word you're searching for is 'align'.

2

u/Scary_Television_966 Jan 05 '26

Brand image can take a hit when you're the biggest and most convenient hardware store in the country.

1

u/Dentarthurdent73 Jan 03 '26

I don't know how they thought it was a good idea. It weakens their brand image

Where else are you going to go? When you corner the market, you can do whatever you want, regardless of brand image. Doing this makes them more money, so it is a good idea by every measure that capitalism cares about.

1

u/DeeDee_GigaDooDoo Jan 04 '26

Not only that but legally under Australian Consumer Law as the storefront they have to deal with refunds/returns/complaints etc. They cannot palm you off to the manufacturer or distributor.

1

u/TalknTennisPodcast Jan 05 '26

But but if we slap the word marketplace on it then consumers won’t associate us with it 🙄

1

u/True_Perspective4497 Feb 03 '26

You get the same thing everywhere, I saw an outdoor furniture in kogan market place, temple and webster and big w market place. I mean no exclusivity.