The Auditorio Puerta Ferrisa in Alicante recently became the epicenter for a critical discussion on the future of digital commerce. Hosting over 120 professionals from the Valencian Community, the NEXT Conversion event moved beyond theoretical concepts to deliver a practical, action-oriented blueprint for sustainable eCommerce growth. The conference, organized by Marketing4eCommerce, dissected the core challenges sellers face today, focusing on the intersection of vision, profitability, and purpose in an increasingly complex digital landscape.<\/p>\n
The event opened with a compelling case study from Francis Carbonell, Digital & Ecommerce Manager at Wonders, a footwear brand with nearly four decades of history. Carbonell detailed the brand’s four-decade journey from its 1985 founding in a pre-online world to its current omnichannel ecosystem. This transformation, he argued, was not about a sudden revolution but a strategic integration where physical retail heritage meets digital agility.<\/p>\n
“The key was courage,” Carbonell stated, emphasizing the mindset shift required in a traditional company. He championed a philosophy where speed and iterative learning trump the pursuit of flawless execution. For Wonders, this meant building a diverse online presence encompassing a proprietary eCommerce site, B2B channels, and a strategic presence on multiple third-party marketplaces, both physical and digital<\/a>. A significant focus of the past year has been the integration of artificial intelligence to streamline and enhance this ecosystem, demonstrating that for legacy brands, technology is a lever for connection, not just a new sales channel.<\/p>\n The first panel of the day tackled the dominant force in modern eCommerce: marketplaces. Featuring Mario Font\u00e1n of Colorbaby, Diego Revilla of Fini Golosinas, and Fernando Carrera of the marketplace-specialized agency Bluco, the discussion moved past the simplistic question of whether to be on marketplaces to the more nuanced issue of how to thrive within them.<\/p>\n The debate centered on the delicate balance between volume and brand identity. Font\u00e1n highlighted the operational complexity of managing extensive catalogs, like those in the toy sector, on these platforms. A central point of consensus was the critical challenge of maintaining brand control and positioning in algorithm-driven, highly aggressive environments where price wars are commonplace. The panel identified common pitfalls for brands entering marketplaces, including constant tension with traditional retail partners and an over-dependence on giants like Amazon.<\/p>\nMarketplaces: From Sales Channel to Core Growth Lever<\/h3>\n