BuyaParcel

Case Study

BuyaParcel sees visibility growth and higher list ranking with Optiseller's Scaling Programme

Optiseller caught up with Liam haggar Pietrzak, Co-Founder and Commercial Director of Buyaparcel.com, at eBay Open 2022.

What is your name and what is your role at Buyaparcel?

My name is Liam haggar Pietrzak and I am co-founder and commercial director of Buyaparcel.com. A multi-channel retailer of tools plumbing and garden products with almost 30,000 products available from our online store.

How was BuyaParcel founded?

Originally formed in the 1970’s as a plumbing and heating merchant the Godfreys family run trade business moved into the world of retail in the early 90’s. In the early 2000’s the business diversified once more and created its first online store followed by its eBay account in July 2004, which is when I joined. The Buyaparcel.com trading name was created in 2007 but continues to trade on the back of the original business foundations dealing with many of the biggest brands in our sector for over 20 years.

How did you hear about Optiseller?

I have seen Optiseller promoted via eBay for a number of years now but dismissed the need for it in our business given our 18 years of experience trading on eBay. However, after some analysis last year of our traffic and impressions on site we decided to give the scaling program a go to see if there was anything we were missing on our listing practise.

What business objectives did you hope to achieve through our Scaling programme?

I tried to approach it with an open mind, it is hard when you are an established seller with over 2 million sales and 18 years of history not to believe you have all the bases covered. That proved not to be the case for a high proportion of our listings. The intelligence of the Optiseller tools, Aspect Finder+ in particular highlights not only key gaps in your data but suggestions to fill those gaps or replace poor data in your listing.

Have you seen positive results so far through the Scaling programme?

We have almost 30,000 listings live so we have only just scratched the surface of what we need to do. However, on the listings we have optimised using the Optiseller tools, we have seen an improvement to visibility with the organic listing ranking higher in Best Match search. We are also appearing in more key filter searches thanks to the work we have done with Aspect Finder+.

What is one key take away that you have implemented into your business strategy?

I had a conversation with one of your team when we looked to extend our Optiseller subscription saying we were not “finished” optimising our listings. His reply was “are you ever finished optimising?”. He is right in what he says it is an ongoing concern, and so it should be given its significance. With that in mind, one major key take away for me from the program is to make sure we have the right discipline when loading new inventory. The Optiseller program is about improving what you already have listed, with the knowledge of the Optiseller Scaling Program we want to make sure our listings are the best they can be from the point of creation.

How have you seen the market evolved since you started selling on eBay?

When we first joined eBay 18 years ago the landscape of the online world was very different to what we see today. There were far more bedroom sellers than business registered and no real connection between the seller and the marketplace. Fast forward to today and 50p of every £1 now is spent on a marketplace, with eBay in the top 2. There are more and more household brands on the eBay platform and buyer confidence in buying from eBay has never been higher. We have a strong account management team who support our business with commercial needs and promotional activities throughout the year. Our relationship with eBay has never been stronger in what is a very testing time for all in retail. The eBay Open event we are attending today shows you how far eBay have come in the last few years with seller engagement.

How has your experience been so far with Chris and the team?

When I was first introduced to Chris we immediately had a connection. He has a detailed understanding of what challenges we face as sellers as he previously sold on eBay himself. Having someone who has seen things from your perspective really adds value to the Scaling Program. Chris’s combined knowledge of the Optiseller tools and the eBay marketplace itself allows the conversation on the Zoom calls to flow very easily. We often covered the commercial benefits of the change you can make using the Optiseller tools and the order to make them in. Chris is a real asset to the Optiseller team.

What would you say to someone who is considering reaching out to Optiseller to scale up their store?

Don’t be like we were for years and think that because you are an established eBay seller with 1000’s of sales on your listings that your listings are perfectly optimised. There is almost certainly room for improvement to improve your Best Match results. What’s even more refreshing is the speed of which these changes can be made. The Optiseller tools save you hundreds of man hours by using intelligent algorithms to improve your existing data.

What does the future look like for BuyaParcel?

We are currently having a warehouse extension built which will increase our capacity by around 30%. This is due for completion at the start of 2023. Once complete this extra capacity will allow us not only to increase stock holding of existing fast sellers but to onboard some more big brands into our catalogue. We are also having a further push on re-establishing cross border trade which has been difficult since leaving the EU. However, we feel with the support of some key partners we will be able to overcome these obstacles in the new year. 2023 looks set to be another exciting year of growth and opportunity for key partners of Buyaparcel.com