Selling to retailers and consumers: how to organize B2B and B2C

Rules that must stay separate

Other elements follow different logic depending on the customer group. Merging them produces visible, sometimes costly, mistakes.

• Prices and how they are displayed. A professional negotiates; a consumer sees a public price. In Quebec, according to the Office de la protection du consommateur, the price advertised to consumers must be an "all-inclusive" price that covers every amount payable. Only certain amounts collected for a public authority, such as the GST and QST, may be added at the time of payment.
• Payment terms: immediate payment for the public; invoicing on terms and credit limits for business accounts.
• Quantities and units: by the unit for one, by the case or volume tier for the other.
• Return and warranty policies, which don't stem from the same commitments.
• Communications: a reseller expects a proper purchase order and invoice; a consumer expects a clear confirmation and shipment tracking.

Catalogues and prices: two storefronts, one source

Consumers shouldn't see your wholesale prices, and resellers shouldn't order at the public price by mistake. The most common solution is to keep a single catalogue, then apply display and pricing rules based on the logged-in customer.

Decisions to make

• Are some products reserved for professionals, such as foodservice formats or exclusive SKUs?
• Are wholesale prices hidden from visitors who aren't logged in?
• Does a consumer promotion also apply to resellers? If so, how do you keep it from conflicting with their agreements?
• Is your suggested retail price consistent with the price you charge online yourself? A poorly explained gap can strain your relationship with resellers.

Orders and service: different journeys

A consumer buys once or twice a year, often on mobile. A restaurant orders the same products every week, sometimes at the last minute. Their journeys have different priorities.

• On the consumer side: discovery, trust, fast checkout and clear delivery information.
• On the business side: reordering from a previous order, a standing order list, visible negotiated prices, invoices and account statements.

Your customer service team must be able to find any order regardless of channel, but respond according to the rules of each customer group.

The risks of separate or poorly coordinated systems

Many brands start with an online store for the public and business orders by email or in a second tool. That setup works at first, then shows its limits.

• Stock sold twice, because each system keeps its own count.
• Diverging product content, with different descriptions or photos by channel.
• A fragmented customer view: a restaurant owner who also buys for personal use appears under two identities.
• Reports that are hard to consolidate: true margin by product across all channels requires exports and manual corrections.

Two systems aren't a mistake in themselves. They become one when no one has decided which is authoritative for products, stock and customers.

Preparing the right architecture

1. List the shared data and designate a system of record for each item.
2. Describe the rules specific to each customer group: pricing, payment, units, returns.
3. Choose your model: one platform that serves both groups with distinct rules, or two specialized tools linked by an integration. Both options are defensible; the second requires a robust, monitored integration.
4. Test the overlaps: a consumer promotion running during a business order, a business customer buying for personal use, the last unit in stock wanted by both channels.

Comparing B2B and B2C

Where Shopflow fits

Shopflow is one of the platforms that serve both customer groups on a single engine. According to the description of its B2B engine, it provides private catalogues, prices by customer or contract, and payment terms alongside the consumer storefront. If you also sell in store, the POS Integration page describes how the platform connects to your registers; compatibility with your specific POS still needs to be confirmed. Whether to use a single model or two tools remains your decision, based on your rules and current systems.