Why We Built Pontivia Commerce: What I Learned Watching Other Brands Struggle with Marketplaces

By Connor Doughty, Managing Director, Pontivia Commerce

Back in 2015, we were listing brands like Heat Holders and Gentle Grip on Amazon and eBay — long before those platforms were as dominant as they are today. We had strong relationships with the brand owners, and because of the trust we’d built, they were happy for us to sell their products online.

At the time, our focus was socks. That was our world. But even then, it was obvious: most brands weren’t equipped for marketplaces. And more importantly — they knew it.

We were approached by UK, EU and US brands — some who were well-established on Amazon but had no plan for other platforms like Debenhams, Decathlon or Secret Sales. Others had never touched online marketplaces at all.

They weren’t just asking us to list products — they were asking us to solve problems.
And they were problems we’d already lived through as Sock Snob.

Marketplace Selling Isn’t Just Listing — It’s Infrastructure

Sock Snob gave us the testing ground:
We learned how to integrate APIs that don’t always behave.
We learned which marketplaces care about brand presentation — and which ones don’t.
We learned how content affects trust, pricing, and long-term performance.
We also learned the hard way that marketplaces will not bend to your brand — you have to adapt, without compromising what makes you special.

We’ve worked with brands that only want support on non-Amazon channels. We’ve worked with EU-based partners struggling with post-Brexit customs and duty. And we’ve worked with US brands eager to crack Europe but overwhelmed by VAT and compliance.

Each one had a slightly different challenge. But the common thread?
They all needed a partner who understood the realities of marketplace selling — and who wouldn’t damage their brand in the process.

What Brands Get Wrong (And Why It’s Not Their Fault)

We’ve seen brands try to go direct on marketplaces with good intentions but poor execution.
They didn’t know:

How much content is actually required?
How to manage pricing across channels.
How to list in a way that reflects the brand.
How complex cross-border selling would be.

To be clear — that’s not a criticism. Most brand owners are brilliant at building ranges, developing products, running stores, or selling wholesale. But marketplaces? That’s a different beast.

It’s technical. It’s time-consuming. It’s not core to most businesses.
And that’s okay.

I always compare it to our own finance setup:
I’m not an accountant. I outsource that because it frees me up to run the parts of the business I’m best at.
That’s exactly what Pontivia does for brands.

So Why Did We Build Pontivia?

Because marketplaces are only getting more important — and more complicated.
Because we’ve been through the learning curve ourselves.
And because we realised we already had the systems, team and experience to help other brands avoid the pain we went through.

Pontivia was built to fill the gap for brand owners, distributors, and wholesalers who want to sell on marketplaces — but without losing control.

Some marketplace “partners” just want access to your catalogue and ask you to dropship. That’s fine for some, but not for most. That’s why we offer two clear models:

Wholesale: You send stock to our warehouse, we handle everything else — including customer service, returns, content, pricing and platform management. We pay you on 30-day terms.
3PL Model: We sell, your third-party logistics provider fulfils, and they bill us. No heavy lifting for you.

We don’t list anything without brand approval.
We don’t undercut RRPs.
We don’t see your brand as inventory — we treat it like our own.

Final Word

You’ve worked hard to build your brand. We’ve seen that up close — and we respect it.
Whether you’ve already dipped your toe into marketplaces or you’ve been burned by the wrong partner, we’re here to offer a more respectful, brand-focused way of doing things.

We built Pontivia because we’ve been there.
And now we’re here to help you get there — properly.

— Connor Doughty
Managing Director, Pontivia Commerce