Sell on Zalando. By invitation, then properly connected.

Zalando's three partner models

For the Partner Program, Zalando cites more than 60 million active customers in 25 European countries.

• Wholesale: Zalando buys your range, owns the stock and handles order processing, payment, logistics and customer service.
• Partner Program: the marketplace model. You set your own prices, keep control of range, stock depth, brand and marketing, and ship via your own logistics, via Zalando's logistics services or a mix of both. Analytics and tools are available in the zDirect partner portal.
• Connected Retail: for bricks-and-mortar retailers. Store stock is transferred from the inventory management system to Zalando, and orders are shipped directly from the store. Zalando processes the payment, keeps the commission and transfers the rest.

Source: Zalando partnership models, retrieved on 01.11.2026.

Who gets into the Partner Program

Zalando only invites brands that the company expects customers to like. According to Zalando, it does not accept direct applications. After the invitation, Zalando guides you through onboarding in stages:

• Preparation: meet general and country-specific requirements.
• Stages 1 and 2, access and master data: activate the zDirect account, store company data and compliance details, and enter contact, shipping and VAT data for each market.
• Stage 3, item mapping: map item data to Zalando's requirements, with your technical partner or integrator.
• Stage 4, item onboarding: submit items, correct rejected items according to the status code.
• Stage 5, final review and go-live.

Source: Zalando partnership models and Onboarding in the Partner Program, retrieved on 01.11.2026.

What Zalando requires during onboarding

• A review of your company (KYC) before onboarding and during the cooperation.
• A VAT identification number registered for the One-Stop-Shop procedure (OSS) in the company profile. Without OSS, or when selling outside the EU, the local VAT ID for each sales country.
• A return period of at least 30 days in all countries.
• Country-specific obligations, such as extended producer responsibility for batteries, packaging and electrical appliances, labelling and delivery documents per country. In Germany, for example, Zalando names producer responsibility for batteries, packaging and electrical appliances with registration at Stiftung EAR.

Source: Partner Program: general and country-specific onboarding requirements, retrieved on 01.11.2026. Please check the current conditions directly with Zalando.

Fees

Zalando does not publish commission rates for the Partner Program on its public partner pages. For Connected Retail, Zalando mentions a commission that is retained from the revenue, without stating the amount. You learn the conditions directly from Zalando. These fees belong to Zalando; they are not part of X-Sitter MARKETS.

Source: Zalando partnership models, retrieved on 01.11.2026.

How items, stock and orders are connected

Zalando names three routes for the Partner Program:

• Direct integration via the Zalando APIs: item information such as descriptions, prices and images as well as stock go to Zalando automatically, and orders come into your system via the API. Zalando requires a prior review and a technical team of your own for this.
• Approved integrator: a service provider connects your ERP or warehouse management to Zalando, items and stock are kept in sync, orders come back. You are responsible for the connection and the contract with the integrator.
• zDirect interface: items and prices are maintained by hand. This route is only open to partners who use Zalando's fulfillment and is intended for up to 200 items per season.

Source: Integration options in the Partner Program, retrieved on 01.11.2026.

What is typical for data preparation

Fashion places its own requirements on item data. In the Partner University, Zalando provides guides on item mapping, material, sizes, item naming and images as well as the change of season, among others. Typical work before go-live: separate variants properly by colour and size, map sizes to the Zalando size charts, prepare material details and images according to the requirements.

Source: Onboarding in the Partner Program, retrieved on 01.11.2026.

Zalando and other channels from one data source

At X-Sitter MARKETS, Zalando is one of the channels we connect by arrangement. This means: only once your Zalando seller account exists do we check it with you and clarify the integration route. After that, Zalando runs on the same item data maintenance as Amazon, Otto, Kaufland and the other channels on the channel list, directly on your ERP, your inventory management or your shop. On request, we take care of setup and operation: Have marketplaces connected.