UK bike retailer Halfords boosts digital and e-commerce with online marketplace launch

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British bike retailer, Halfords, has launched its Marketplace service which will give customers more choice than ever before, with plans to stock up to 40,000 SKUs.

By partnering with online marketplace provider Mirakl, the retailer will anticipate and react to trends and customer's buying behaviour, and test the market for new brands in real time. New products can be introduced to the site within weeks in response to customer demand, strengthening the digital offer further as Halfords' online sales reached £100million for the first time in the last financial year.

Halfords Marketplace Trading Manager Nina Morris said, "This launch means we can react faster than ever to the needs of our customers, with more choice and access to more brands. Our sector-leading innovation also means we will be able to target new customers who may not have shopped with Halfords before.

"We know our existing customer is really digitally engaged – Halfords.com had 90million visits last year and 25 per cent of all bike sales were made online. Marketplace is a huge opportunity for us to innovate in the sector and offer a wider range.

"From bikes to scooters, drones to kayaks – we'll be able to offer our customers all the latest summer must-haves and everything for family journeys with the convenience of home or work place delivery."

Halfords Marketplace stocks products from over 30 approved partners, including Toolsave, Kiddimoto, e-bikes direct with new lines to be introduced for seasonal picks. It is the latest new digital platform launch for the retailer, aimed at giving new and existing customers a broader range of products delivered to home or work and is an addition to its click and collect offer and eBay store.

Halfords Marketplace is powered by the Mirakl Marketplace Platform. Adrien Nussenbaum, co-founder of Mirakl, believes the new marketplace will be a major success for both Halfords and its customers:

"Online marketplaces offer customers improved choice, service and pricing, so it's no surprise that smart retailers all over the world are launching their own marketplaces. Halfords is savvy to the changing ways in which consumers shop and is delivering a solution to meet that need and builds on its current digital and e-commerce proposition."