In this guide 6 sections
Start on a marketplace when you need first orders and can accept its category rules, then move to your own store once repeat buyers matter more than reach. Both routes bring ad limits and claims checks. Payment scrutiny follows on either route.
Both routes have gatekeepers, just different ones
A marketplace gates the category first. Expect an approval step that asks for ingredient panels, lab reports, a manufacturing licence and photographs of every face of the label. Approval can be pulled later. A single complaint, or one banned keyword buried in your copy, is enough to put the whole listing under review while sales stop.
Your own store has no gate. It has three other hurdles instead. Ad networks restrict health claims and before and after photographs, payment processors underwrite supplement sellers as higher risk, and carriers restrict some device contents such as lithium batteries. Expect the processor to ask for sample labels, a written refund policy and a reserve held back against chargebacks before it approves the account. Customs offices stop some supplement parcels.
- Ingredient panel with serving size and amount per serving
- Certificate of analysis from an independent lab
- Manufacturing licence or facility registration
- Device model number, manual and test report
- Photographs of the front, back and side panels
Who reads your copy before the buyer does?
On a marketplace, a reviewer or an automated filter reads titles, bullet points and images before and after the listing goes live. Cures and detoxes get listings suspended. Buyer reviews carry risk too, since a review saying a capsule fixed a sore knee becomes a claim attached to your page and your name.
Nobody checks copy on your own store. That freedom is a trap. Build the review step yourself, and keep a claims register that every writer, designer and ad buyer must check before anything is published.
Old evidence stops fitting when the product changes. A reformulated capsule with a new excipient, or a thermometer with new firmware, needs its evidence checked again before the old claim stays on the page.
- Exact wording of the claim as it appears on the page
- Study, manual page or test report behind it
- Date approved and the name of the approver
- Every page, ad and email where it appears
- Trigger for a fresh review, such as a new supplier
Reviews, margin and who owns the buyer
The marketplace owns the reviews. It also owns the buyer’s email address. On a shared listing, another seller’s stock can sit under your reviews, and a counterfeit can sit under your photographs without your knowing. You win a sale but not a customer.
Margin looks different on each route. The marketplace takes a referral fee, a fulfilment fee and a charge for ranking in search, and each one is deducted before you see a payout. Your own store drops the referral fee but adds payment processing, ad spend, support hours and a stream of traffic you must build from nothing. Cost one order on each route.
What your own store must add itself
A marketplace hands you a basket and reviews. Your own store hands you nothing. Subscriptions come first for supplements, because a bottle holds a set number of servings and the reorder date can be worked out from the first order.
Compliance fields come next. A general shop template has none of them. Add custom fields to the product record, then print each on the page, the packing slip or both.
- Batch code and expiry date captured at dispatch
- Allergen and warning text kept per product
- Age or country limits applied at checkout
- Serving count that drives reorder reminders
- Device model, serial number and warranty start date
- Recall list that finds every buyer of a given lot
How to sequence the two channels
Many brands use a marketplace to learn which product sells, then move the proven ones to a store of their own once the claims and labels are settled. Keep one stock count behind both. Share the count, or you will oversell.
Check the rules first. Several marketplaces forbid insert cards that point buyers to another site, and an account suspension costs more than the list you hoped to build. A waiting list for new flavours is safer.
This week, list your five best sellers. Beside each, write the claim you make, the proof you hold and the channel most likely to reject it.
Channel decision worksheet
The worksheet is a single page, one row per product. Eight columns follow: category approval needed, claims used, proof on file, ad restriction, processor note, review control, reorder potential and extras the own store would need. A closing block names three test products. Each gets a channel and a review date.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Can I sell supplements on my own website without approval?
No marketplace approval is needed. Ad accounts, your payment processor, and the food and health rules in each country where you sell all still apply, so check them before you launch. Ask a regulatory adviser to confirm.
Why do payment processors treat supplement sellers as higher risk?
Subscription disputes and claims complaints produce chargebacks, so a processor may ask for sample labels, a clear cancellation page and a reserve held back from payouts. Make cancelling easy to find.
Do health devices need different handling from supplements?
Yes. Devices add model and serial numbers, warranty dates, battery shipping rules and sizing. Many markets also regulate devices by what they claim to do, so outcome claims need extra care before they reach the page.
Can I sell on both channels at once?
Yes. Share one stock count between them and use different bundles on each, so a price match never forces you into a loss on the marketplace.