Running B2B and B2C sales on a single e-commerce site has become one of the questions manufacturers and wholesalers ask us most in recent years. On one side there is a store that sells to retail customers by card, in installments and with campaigns; on the other, an ordering channel for dealers with their own prices, payment terms and orders posted to their current account. You can build the two separately, but most of the time there is no need. In this post we explain how a hybrid setup works, where confusion tends to creep in and what to watch for during setup.
What does hybrid e-commerce mean?
In a hybrid setup there is one product catalog and one stock pool, but the prices, product range and payment options a person sees depend on who is logged in. A consumer sees a simple store. When an approved dealer logs in, they see their own price list, account balance, open orders and a bulk ordering screen.
The core idea is simple: one set of data, two experiences. Product descriptions, images and stock are updated once, and both channels work from the same source of truth.
Why two separate systems wear you down over time
Here is the picture we often see at companies running a separate dealer portal and a separate retail store:
- Stock is kept in two places; one gets updated and the other is forgotten, so a dealer orders an item that has already been sold at retail.
- Every new product is entered twice, and the descriptions slowly drift apart.
- A campaign runs on the retail side, the dealer sees the same product cheaper than their own price, and picks up the phone to ask why.
- For reporting, data from both systems is merged in Excel.
Each of these looks like a small issue on its own; together they add up to a serious operational burden.
What the dealer side needs
A B2B channel is not just the retail store with lower prices. Dealers have different needs:
- Customer-specific pricing. Dealer groups, discount rates or fixed prices per product, sometimes all three at once.
- A dedicated product range. Case-pack items, spare parts or dealer-only series that are not sold at retail.
- Current account and payment terms. Orders do not have to be paid by card; they post to the dealer's account, with the balance and credit limit visible on screen.
- Fast bulk ordering. Quick add by product code, reordering a previous order, uploading an order from Excel.
- Minimum order and case multiples. If a dealer has to buy 3 cases rather than 3 units, the system should enforce it.
- Documents. Dealers can access invoices, delivery notes, statements and technical documents from their own screen.
If you are thinking of the dealer channel as a separate project, our B2B dealer portal service page covers these needs in detail.
The retail side should stay simple
The most common mistake in a hybrid setup is letting dealer complexity leak into the consumer experience. A retail customer should never see case multiples, account balances or a "log in to see prices" notice. What they need is a good product page, a fast checkout and clear delivery information. We cover what a product page should contain in our post on the product page that sells.
Pre-setup checklist
| Topic | Question to settle |
|---|---|
| Dealer approval | Are dealer accounts opened automatically, or only with your approval? |
| Pricing logic | Group discounts, customer-specific lists, or prices pulled from the ERP? |
| Payment terms | Which dealers buy on credit, and what happens when they hit their limit? |
| Stock visibility | Does the dealer see the actual quantity or just "in stock / out of stock"? |
| Product range | Which products are sold in only one channel? |
| Accounting | Which account and document type does a dealer order post to in the ERP? |
| Price privacy | Are dealer prices hidden from search engines and shared links? |
| Campaigns | Do retail campaigns affect dealer prices? |
Choosing software before filling in this table is the fastest way to hear "the system doesn't support that" later on.
The ERP connection is the backbone of a hybrid setup
In dealer sales, prices, account balances and credit limits usually live in the ERP. Updating them by hand on the e-commerce side is slow and error-prone. A healthy setup is one where prices and balances flow automatically from the ERP to the store, and orders flow automatically from the store back to the ERP. Writing down up front which data moves in which direction and how often keeps the integration from turning into a surprise later.
How we do it at Globya
On the IMFLEXI platform, B2B and B2C share the same product and stock data without getting mixed up: consumers see a simple store, while dealers see their own prices, their account and a bulk ordering screen. Before setup we fill in the table above together with you and plan the ERP connection within the same project. Our approach for wholesale distributors is on the wholesale and B2B distribution page. Scope and pricing are confirmed in a written proposal after the discovery call. Describe your needs now in 3 minutes
Frequently asked questions
Will dealer prices show up in search engines?
Not with a proper setup. Dealer prices are shown only to logged-in, approved accounts; search engines and visitors who are not logged in see the retail price.
Can dealers also pay by card?
Yes. A dealer who normally buys on account can still pay for the same order by card or bank transfer if they prefer, and you can configure which payment methods are available to which dealer.
Can we switch without shutting down our current dealer portal?
Yes. The new setup is built at a separate test address, dealer accounts and price lists are migrated, and once everything is verified the switch happens in one step.
Isn't it hard to set up a separate price list for every dealer?
If prices come from the ERP, there is no extra work. If they don't, dealer groups and group discounts are enough in most cases, so a handful of lists will do.
The Globya assistant is online 24/7; it answers right away and passes your question to the team if needed.