Kaufland is expanding its online marketplace into Spain and the Netherlands by the end of the summer, bringing its total active markets to nine. Online sellers can already register for the two new regions, the company announced.
A hypermarket chain with a growing digital footprint
Kaufland is a German hypermarket chain with more than 1,600 physical stores across eight countries. It belongs to the Schwarz Group, the same parent company that owns Lidl. The retailer launched its marketplace model in 2021 in Germany, then rolled it out to Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Poland. Last year it added France and Italy.
Kaufland is now preparing to launch its online marketplace in Spain and the Netherlands.
The company says its marketplace will become the largest European-origin network by country count once both launches are complete.
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Reach and growth numbers
In Germany, the retailer’s marketplace draws up to 32 million monthly visitors and lists more than 45 million products across 6,400 categories. The company says revenues in Austria have climbed 439 percent compared to 2024, and in Poland revenues rose 322 percent over the same period — both markets are now two years old.
Currently, Kaufland claims an audience of 139 million online consumers across its existing markets. With the addition of Spain and the Netherlands, its potential reach grows to 220 million consumers by the end of the summer.
According to the company, the growth numbers it achieved are impressive.
However, market competition in both Spain and the Netherlands is already fierce.
Amazon and local players like Bol.com in the Netherlands and Mercado Libre in Spain have strong footholds. Some industry observers note that the company will need to differentiate on cross-border tools and pricing to gain traction quickly.
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Cross-border features for sellers
Online sellers who sign up for the new marketplaces gain access to all of Kaufland’s other markets in a single registration. The company also provides tools to translate product information, customer inquiries and legal texts. It also offers first-line customer service in local languages and supports payment processing in local currencies.
Additionally, these features aim to simplify cross-border selling.
This is a common pain point for merchants expanding into multiple European countries. Kaufland’s approach is to let sellers manage one account while reaching consumers in nine different markets.
It’s a bet that the company’s scale and ease of use can overcome the inertia of established competitors. Whether the bet pays off will depend on how well it executes in two new and very different retail environments.