Kaufland Expands to Spain and the Netherlands. What It Means for Your European Marketplace Strategy.

Kaufland Global Marketplace announced in June 2026 that it is launching two new country storefronts - Spain and the Netherlands - with B2C trading scheduled for late summer 2026. That takes the network from seven markets to nine, and the potential consumer reach from 139 million to 220 million online shoppers across a single seller account.

For brands thinking about where to sell in Europe, this matters. Not because every brand should be on Kaufland. But because it is a useful prompt to step back from the assumption that European expansion means Amazon, and think more carefully about which marketplaces actually fit your product - and why.

The short answer is this: Europe has no single dominant marketplace. It has a patchwork of national and category-specific platforms, and the brands that grow profitably across the region are the ones who choose two or three well-matched channels and build them properly - not the ones who list everywhere and manage nothing well. Kaufland's expansion gives brands a credible new route into Spain and the Netherlands. Whether it is the right route for your product is a different question, and the answer depends almost entirely on what you sell.

Here is how to think through it.

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What Kaufland Is, and Why This Expansion Is Significant

Kaufland Global Marketplace is the online arm of the Schwarz Group, one of Europe's largest retail operators. The platform took over from real.de in Germany, inheriting a broad generalist catalogue and a consumer base built on value-retail positioning. It currently operates in Germany, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, and Italy.

The Spain and Netherlands launches were announced by CEO Gerald Schönbucher at the ecd by Kaufland conference in June 2026. B2B seller onboarding for both markets opened on 11 June 2026. The structural point that matters most for sellers already on the platform: adding a new market takes roughly 30 minutes through the same multi-marketplace portal. One account, one contract, one Mirakl-based back office across all nine countries.

That is a material operational advantage over managing separate national contracts - for example, running Allegro in Poland alongside a separate Cdiscount agreement in France alongside an Otto account in Germany. If your product category and compliance position are already set up for existing Kaufland markets, Spain and the Netherlands become an incremental decision rather than a standing start.

For brands not yet on Kaufland, it is a different calculation. The platform requires partner approval - you cannot self-serve register and start selling the same afternoon. The application asks for company details, VAT numbers, category and assortment, fulfilment model, and evidence of existing marketplace experience. Language requirements are strict: listings must be in the storefront language, with customer service responses in that language within Kaufland's SLA window. Poor-quality machine translation is one of the most common reasons approved sellers underperform.

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Europe Is Not One Marketplace. It Never Was.

The default assumption for many US and Australian brands entering Europe is that Amazon covers it. This is understandable - Amazon dominates the UK, and Amazon.de is the largest single marketplace in Germany. But even in Germany, Amazon accounts for roughly 45-50% of marketplace volume. The other half goes elsewhere.

The picture changes significantly by country and by product category.

In the Netherlands, bol.com is the dominant platform. It consistently outranks Amazon.nl in traffic, with over 13 million active customers and approximately 50,000 sellers. Dutch consumers have a long-standing preference for it over Amazon, backed by a deep local logistics network and strong brand familiarity. Any brand targeting the Netherlands seriously needs a bol.com strategy - which is precisely why Kaufland's Netherlands launch is an interesting development. It gives brands a second credible option in a market where Amazon has historically been weak.

In France, the landscape splits between Cdiscount, FNAC Darty (strong in electronics, books, and home appliances), and Amazon.fr. Each has separate catalogue requirements, fulfilment expectations, and customer service standards. A brand that lists across all three without platform-specific content typically underperforms on all three. We see this consistently - the instinct to be everywhere produces accounts that are nowhere.

Germany's second marketplace is OTTO, a heritage retailer with a GMV exceeding €7 billion in its 2024/25 fiscal year and an audience that skews toward quality-conscious consumers. For brands in home, lifestyle, and furniture categories, OTTO converts better than Amazon on premium positioning. For tools, hardware, and DIY products, ManoMano is the specialist platform to consider across France, Germany, and Spain - its category focus means less noise and a buyer who already knows what they are looking for.

For fashion and lifestyle brands, Zalando operates across more than 25 European countries with over 60 million active customers. Its Partner Programme gives approved brands access to Zalando's logistics and data infrastructure. The category discipline is strict, but for the right product the platform reach is unmatched.

In Poland and Central Europe, Allegro is the answer - with monthly visitor numbers that rival Amazon and eBay, and far less international seller competition than you would find on either.

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Which Marketplace Fits Your Product?

The honest answer is that marketplace selection should start with product category, not geography. A sensible framework runs as follows.

If you sell general consumer goods at a value or mid-market price point, Amazon is the foundation and Kaufland is the credible multi-country layer on top of it - particularly now that Spain and the Netherlands are included.

If your product is fashion or lifestyle, Zalando is a priority channel. Amazon is supplementary.

If your product is tools, power equipment, or anything in the DIY or trade category, ManoMano earns serious attention. In Spain specifically, ManoMano is well established - which is worth noting alongside the Kaufland Spain launch for any brand in that space.

If the Netherlands is your target market, bol.com comes before everything else. Kaufland's Netherlands launch will add competition and choice, but bol.com has built a 25-year head start on local trust.

If Germany is your primary EU market, the combination of Amazon.de and OTTO covers most of the volume, with Kaufland as a sensible addition given its German consumer base and the Schwarz Group's physical retail presence. We consistently see UK and US brands assume that translating their Amazon listings into German covers the market, completely missing the fact that premium home and lifestyle buyers are actively searching on OTTO instead.

One observation from working with brands across these markets: the ones that grow are the ones that choose two or three channels and built them properly - with localised content, platform-appropriate fulfilment, and someone actively managing each account. The ones that stall are the ones that listed on six platforms, wrote identical English content across all of them, and wondered why performance was flat.

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What Selling on Kaufland.es and Kaufland.nl Actually Requires

If Spain and the Netherlands are on your roadmap, here is what the compliance picture looks like.

Spain (kaufland.es): Non-Spanish sellers are required to register via an authorised representative. EPR registrations are mandatory and specific: packaging, plastic bags, tyres, and tobacco filters require registration with the RPP (MITECO); electrical and electronic equipment requires registration with RII-AEE (Ministerio de Industria); batteries and accumulators with RII-PYA (Ministerio de Industria). These are not optional. Amazon enforces EU compliance at listing level without warning - and we have seen the same enforcement posture on other EU marketplaces when EPR registration numbers are missing.

Spain is now enforcing packaging EPR and product compliance in the same way Germany did two years ago. Brands that assume a UK or German compliance structure covers Spain are typically wrong on two or three specific registrations.

Netherlands (kaufland.nl): The EPR picture is simpler at launch - no EPR information is currently required to sell on Kaufland.nl. That will not remain the position indefinitely as EU-wide enforcement tightens, but it reduces the compliance barrier for an initial launch.

Both markets require content in the local language - Spanish and Dutch respectively - and a returns address inside the EU.

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The Coordination Problem

The broader challenge that Kaufland's expansion illustrates is not which marketplace to add. It is who owns the coordination when you are running multiple channels across multiple countries.

Spain introduces a Spanish authorised representative requirement. Each market adds language requirements, EPR obligations, and fulfilment considerations. Run three EU marketplaces actively and you are managing three sets of compliance filings, three content workstreams, three advertising accounts, and three customer service SLAs - plus the VAT registrations and EPR submissions that sit underneath all of them.

The brands that handle this well do not try to coordinate it themselves. They find a partner who covers the full picture - compliance, operations, and marketplace management - and stays accountable when something goes wrong. The brands that struggle are the ones who appointed a regulatory specialist for VAT, an Amazon agency for listings, and a logistics partner for fulfilment, and discovered too late that none of them were talking to each other.

If you are looking at European marketplace expansion - whether that is Kaufland specifically, bol.com in the Netherlands, or a broader multi-channel strategy across Germany, France, and Spain - we are happy to take a look at what your setup actually requires. Start with a conversation: scalewith.co.uk/contact

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is Kaufland Global Marketplace and when is it launching in Spain and the Netherlands?

Kaufland Global Marketplace is the online marketplace operated by the Schwarz Group, one of Europe's largest retail organisations. It currently operates in Germany, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, and Italy. Spain and the Netherlands are joining the network in late summer 2026, following an announcement at the ecd by Kaufland conference in June 2026. B2B seller onboarding opened on 11 June 2026. With both new markets live, the platform will reach approximately 220 million online shoppers across nine European countries through a single seller account.

Is Kaufland the right marketplace for my product in Europe?

It depends on what you sell. Kaufland's value-retail positioning and broad generalist catalogue make it well suited to consumer goods, household products, and electronics at a competitive price point. It is less suited to premium fashion (Zalando is the dominant platform there) or specialist trade categories (ManoMano for tools and DIY). For the Netherlands specifically, bol.com is the established market leader and should be the primary channel for most brands - Kaufland's Dutch launch adds a second option but does not displace bol.com's position.

What compliance is required to sell on Kaufland in Spain?

Non-Spanish sellers are required to appoint an authorised representative. Three separate EPR registrations are mandatory: packaging and plastic bags with the RPP (MITECO); electrical and electronic equipment with the RII-AEE (Ministerio de Industria); batteries and accumulators with the RII-PYA (Ministerio de Industria). All listings must be in Spanish. A returns address inside the EU is required. Brands that have existing EPR compliance in Germany or France should not assume it covers Spain - the registrations are country-specific.

Do I need a separate VAT registration to sell in Spain or the Netherlands?

Yes. Selling and holding inventory in Spain or the Netherlands creates a VAT obligation in each country. If you use Amazon Pan-EU or a multi-country fulfilment network that routes stock through Spanish or Dutch warehouses, a VAT registration in each country is typically required. If you fulfil cross-border from another EU country (for example, from a German 3PL), your obligation depends on whether your total EU-wide cross-border sales exceed the €10,000 pan-EU threshold, at which point you must either register for VAT locally in each destination country or use the OSS (One Stop Shop) scheme. This is worth confirming with a VAT specialist before you start selling, not after your first tax authority letter arrives.

How does Kaufland compare to Amazon for European marketplace expansion?

The two platforms serve different functions in a European strategy. Amazon offers the largest single-marketplace reach in most EU countries and the most mature seller tools, but comes with higher fee structures and intense competition on most categories. Kaufland offers a single account across nine markets, lower seller saturation, and a value-retail consumer positioning that suits certain product types well. For most brands entering Europe, the question is not Kaufland or Amazon - it is how the two complement each other given your category, margin structure, and operational capacity.