1. The Challenge
Tasked with developing Australia’s first B2B wholesale marketplace, the project faced several critical operational challenges. The goal was to build a scalable, low-cost operation capable of gathering valuable data to validate the business model and prove the marketplace’s viability. Success would hinge on generating enough traction to secure an initial round of investment, creating a financial runway to propel the business toward future funding rounds.
With no pre-existing infrastructure, the client needed a team to build the operational foundation from scratch while executing lean, high-impact activities that would generate fast results.
2. Our Approach
We approached this opportunity by embedding as the core execution team, designing operations to be lean, data-driven, and investment-ready from day one.
Key priorities included:
- Setting up and optimizing database health for clean, actionable data.
- Implementing a CRM system and building a structured sales funnel.
- Automating customer communication to support scalability at a low cost.
- Creating dashboards and KPIs to track traction and tell a compelling story to investors.
- Recruiting and training a small but high-performing team focused on both buyer and seller growth.
- Running direct call campaigns to accelerate onboarding and engagement.
Our method focused equally on building long-term operational foundations and achieving short-term metrics that would demonstrate traction to investors.
3. Execution Highlights
Over 18 months, we:
- Integrated operational systems with the accounting platform for financial transparency.
- Developed an incentive scheme aligned with key growth metrics.
- Automated customer engagement workflows to efficiently scale buyer and seller acquisition.
- Segmented the database to personalize outreach and nurture leads based on behavior.
- Built comprehensive dashboards and reports to track buyer and seller growth, conversion rates, and revenue.
- Ran targeted direct call campaigns to onboard sellers and stimulate buyer activity.
4. Outcome and Impact
The results exceeded all initial expectations:
- $91 Million in marketplace growth achieved in just 1.5 years.
- $28 Million secured in investment funding.
- Over 20,000+ buyers acquired.
- 800+ sellers successfully onboarded.
- 35%+ revenue growth achieved year-over-year.
- +30% increase in repeat buyer activity, strengthening marketplace retention and long-term value.
By acting as an embedded execution team, we built a low-cost, high-impact operational engine that not only validated the marketplace model but also created a strong foundation for sustainable scaling and future investment rounds.
