There is a huge shift in the way we receive services. Consider it: home repairs, exercise coaching, tutoring, even salon services in the home. Service markets are fast emerging as the preferred method of connecting individuals with reputable providers.

If you're a founder or operator thinking about launching a multi-vendor service marketplace in 2025, you're looking at a market that's growing fast. But making a platform really work isn't just about getting providers together. It's about setting up a smooth, reliable, and trust that empowers both users and vendors.

Step 1: Start with a Specific Niche

Before you build a single thing, be super clear about the problem you're solving and who you're solving it for.

• Are you focusing on home services in smaller European cities?
• Are you connecting yoga teachers with students learning from afar?
• Or helping city people find last-minute pet grooming?

We have witnessed marketplaces performing the best when they are narrow and deep at Shipturtle. They select an extremely definite region and establish a local network initially. Make your system stronger using that initial success and then attempt to expand out.

Step 2: Make Sure People Want It (Both Sides)

A marketplace only works if both the service providers and the customers are excited about it.

• Talk to service providers: What problems do they have right now? How do they find work?
• Talk to customers: What do they wish was better about hiring a service provider?

You can test if people are interested without spending a lot of money. Try simple things like setting up "coming soon" pages, waitlists, or quick forms to gather interest.

Step 3: Build the Main Platform (Don't Overdo It)

It's tempting to want every bell and whistle from day one: reviews, chat, bidding, GPS tracking. Don't fall for that.

Start with just the basics you need, like:

• Finding vendors (search, ways to sort, profiles)
• Making bookings or asking for services
• Safe payments

How Shipturtle makes it easy: Our platform lets you set up your service marketplace with everything from vendor dashboards and appointment booking to vendor payments and delivery steps. It’s all ready to go. No need to write custom code for the core parts.

With Shipturtle, you don’t have to stitch together multiple tools or worry about backend complexities. Our platform is designed to streamline the entire process from onboarding vendors to managing transactions and delivering services. It’s built for scale, security, and speed, so you can focus on growing your marketplace instead of building it from scratch.

Step 7: Make Money Smartly

Start by offering your service for free to build trust. Once people see the value, then you can start charging.

Common ways to make money:

• A fee for each job done
• A monthly fee for vendors (for listing or for special placement)
• Charging for customer requests (you pay when a customer expresses interest)

Shipturtle Flexibility: You can easily set up how you make money in your dashboard. This includes everything from a fixed fee to different levels of subscriptions, or even a mix of ways to earn commissions.

Step 8: Make Things Better and Expand

Once your marketplace is working well in one city or one area:

• Figure out which vendor types are doing best.
• Copy your success in nearby areas.
• Add new services based on what users are looking for.

Grow without worry: Shipturtle’s system is built to handle growth. You can add more locations, languages, categories, and team members as your business gets bigger.

Final Thoughts: You Don't Have to Invent Everything

The biggest challenges aren’t about building the tech, they’re about having clarity, focus, and flawless execution. That’s where most founders struggle. With Shipturtle, you don’t need to build everything from scratch. Our platform gives you all the tools you need to launch fast manage vendors, handle bookings, process payments, track deliveries, and scale with confidence. Whether you're building the next UrbanClap or a niche marketplace for luxury wellness, everything is ready to go. And so is our team. Whether you're starting small or planning a city-wide rollout, Shipturtle adapts to your needs. Spend less time worrying about tech and more time building a trusted, successful service marketplace. Want to see how it works? Book a demo or explore marketplace templates today.