What does hybrid sales mean?
B2B is selling to businesses; B2C is selling to end customers. In a hybrid setup, both run on the same e-commerce platform. A visitor who browses without logging in sees retail prices and checks out by card. A dealer who logs in sees the same products at their own prices, with their own payment terms and current account.
One platform instead of two separate systems
| Topic | Two separate systems | Hybrid platform |
|---|---|---|
| Product catalog | Entered and updated twice | One catalog |
| Stock | Two sources, risk of mismatch | One stock pool |
| Admin panel | Two separate panels | One panel |
| Integrations | Separate for each system | Built once |
| Reporting | Data has to be merged | All sales in one place |
Globya's e-commerce platform IMFLEXI supports this hybrid structure out of the box. Its multi-store feature also lets you open separate storefronts for different brands or countries from the same panel.
Rules that change by user
The real work in a hybrid setup is getting right what each user sees. Typical differences:
- Price: Retail prices are shown including VAT; dealer prices come from the price list and discounts, usually excluding VAT.
- Minimum order: Dealers may have a case-quantity or minimum-amount rule; retail customers do not.
- Payment: Retail pays upfront by card; dealers buy on terms, charged to their current account.
- Product visibility: Some products can be visible to dealers only.
- Promotions: A retail promotion does not affect dealer prices, and vice versa.
Example scenario
Picture a cosmetics manufacturer. For years it has sold its products through pharmacy and store dealers, and now it wants to sell from its own website too. In a hybrid setup, dealers keep ordering through the portal under their existing pricing agreements, while end customers shop from the retail storefront of the same site. The product team adds a new product once, and stock is deducted from both channels. You can also read our notes specific to the cosmetics and personal care industry.
Managing channel conflict
Selling directly to end customers can make dealers uneasy. There are ways to manage this: keeping retail prices in line with the dealer's recommended retail price, selling some products only through the dealer channel, or routing part of the orders from the site to the local dealer in that region. These are commercial decisions; our job is to make sure the platform supports all of them.
Frequently asked questions
Can a dealer login be added to my existing retail site?
If your site runs on IMFLEXI, the dealer structure can be added. If you are on a different platform, we will work out together whether a migration or a separate portal makes more sense.
Will dealers see retail prices?
If you want them to, yes; they can be shown as the recommended retail price. If not, dealers see only their own prices.
For the full service, see the B2B dealer portal and e-commerce pages, or get in touch to talk about your sales structure.