Makro Marketplace Is Actively Failing Small Businesses – My Full Experience

As a small business owner running Pretty Little Things, I joined Makro Marketplace hoping to grow my reach through a trusted national platform. I’ve now spent months battling system flaws, platform neglect, poor support, and financial losses — and I feel compelled to share my full experience publicly so that others know what they’re getting into.

🧾 FEES PAID – FOR WHAT? I pay: R230 per month for platform access Commission on every sale A R39.10 courier fee per order (even when the customer pays for delivery)

Despite this, I’ve received poor support, broken systems, zero accountability, and profit margins that don’t justify staying on the platform.

📦 COURIER FAILURES & FINANCIAL LOSS On 23 May 2025, I received an order for a ceramic tile and earrings. The order was: Packaged securely Collected on time (27 May) Then returned to me in a damaged state and cancelled without warning The tile was broken, and Makro refunded the customer without contacting me. The courier mishandled the item, but I was told to provide proof that my packaging was “sufficient” — despite their own support team previously confirming the damage occurred in transit.

I was then told I would only be refunded R90, not the actual customer-paid price of R113.68, and that commission would still be deducted — even though the entire order was cancelled.

So I lost: The tile The sale The customer The cost to remake the product And still had to fight to prove that the courier — not me — was responsible

This is just one example. There have been more.

⚙️ LISTING SYSTEM IS BROKEN Makro's listing system isn’t designed for anything outside of mass-produced commercial goods.

To list handmade polymer clay earrings, I’m forced to fill in irrelevant fields like: Diamond clarity Gold purity Gemstone type Gold certification Diamond cut

If I leave them blank, my listing is declined. If I enter placeholder info, I’m told the listing is misleading. Some listings go live. Some get declined. There’s no consistency. No logic. No seller support.

🧾 INVOICING & SUPPORT FAILURES I’ve submitted multiple tickets requesting: Transport and commission invoices Remittance reports Help with rejected listings Clarification on collection delays

Most tickets were closed without resolution, even after submitting the requested documents. I had to chase and calculate my own remittance manually because Makro couldn’t provide it in full.

Even now, I have unreconciled payments that don’t match their records.

📤 NO NOTIFICATIONS, YET PENALISED FOR SLA For weeks, I received no order notifications via email — yet SLA penalties were app**** when I didn’t ship on time. My profile clearly states I'm not open on weekends, yet weekend days are still counted against me.

Meanwhile, the courier sometimes only collects parcels days after I’ve logged them, but I’m the one penalised for late fulfilment.

📉 IMPOSSIBLE PROFITS ON SALES Here’s the reality: A customer pays R290 (R240 for products, R50 for shipping) Makro still charges me a R39.10 courier fee After all deductions, my profit = next to nothing On another sale of R60, I made just R7.51.

I cannot increase my prices — doing so would price me out of the market entirely. But at these margins, I’m losing money for every sale.

🚫 NO RESPONSE, NO ACCOUNTABILITY I’ve posted publicly on Facebook tagging Makro SA — no reply. I’ve emailed their Marketplace management — no reply. Support tickets are cold, automated, and often closed before resolution. Their courier fails, the system fails, and I’m left absorbing the cost every time.

Makro Marketplace is not built to support small businesses. The platform is flawed, the seller systems are illogical, the support is dismissive, and the fees are disproportionate to the tools provided.

If you’re a small business considering joining the platform: proceed with caution. You’ll be paying monthly just to keep fighting for your money.

Sincerely, Pretty Little Things www.prettylittlethingsza.co.za