The verdict in three sentences
For a London office supplies and consumables distributor serving 450 corporate clients on paper or emailed purchase orders, a B2B e-commerce platform costs GBP 55,000 to 120,000. What sells the platform to clients is the company-specific catalogue, department budgets and approval workflow, because their procurement teams gain control. The project ships in 4 to 5 months and targets 20% lower order processing costs in the first year.
The features that matter to a corporate client
A City law firm, a charity in Southwark or a tech scale-up does not buy like a consumer. The office manager enters the order, the department head approves, finance receives one monthly invoice. The platform must reproduce that workflow.
| Feature | 2026 budget (GBP) | Priority | Client benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4,000 SKU catalogue with photos and spec sheets | 8,000 to 15,000 | Essential | Fast search, supplier reference |
| Client-specific catalogue and pricing | 10,000 to 19,000 | Essential | Only contracted items visible |
| Multi-user accounts per department | 6,500 to 13,500 | Essential | One login per requester |
| Budgets and spending caps per department | 5,500 to 12,000 | Essential | Blocked above the monthly budget |
| 1 or 2 level approval workflow | 6,500 to 15,000 | Essential | Email and Teams notification to approver |
| Monthly invoicing and 30-day terms | 5,500 to 13,500 | Essential | Consolidated invoice, statement per department |
| Card, BACS or purchase card payment | 4,500 to 10,000 | Recommended | Small clients and one-off orders |
| Client spend dashboard | 8,500 to 21,000 | Recommended | Consumption by department and month |
A GBP 55,000 platform covers these features with a simple back-office system. GBP 120,000 reflects ERP sync (Sage, Microsoft Dynamics), advanced dashboards and punchout to client procurement systems.
Technical options and their 3-year cost
| Option | Setup (GBP) | Monthly cost (GBP) | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard store (WooCommerce) + B2B plugins | 20,000 to 35,000 | 500 to 1,000 | Fragile approvals, unreliable budgets |
| International B2B SaaS platform | 30,000 to 55,000 | 3,000 to 8,000 | Per-user pricing, vendor roadmap |
| Kolonell custom build (Next.js + PostgreSQL) | 55,000 to 120,000 | 1,300 to 2,700 | 4 to 5 month timeline |
| Cumulative 3-year cost, custom | 102,000 to 217,000 | Not applicable | Code ownership |
| Cumulative 3-year cost, SaaS | 138,000 to 343,000 | Not applicable | Vendor lock-in |
Custom comes out cheaper over 3 years as soon as clients demand budgets and approvals, and it can integrate the payment and procurement tools your clients already use.
Timeline and targets
| Step | Duration | Tracked indicator |
|---|---|---|
| Scoping with 5 pilot clients | 3 weeks | Approval workflows mapped |
| Design and catalogue | 4 weeks | 4,000 SKUs imported |
| Development | 8 to 10 weeks | UAT on staging |
| Pilot with 20 companies | 3 weeks | 80% of pilot orders online |
| Progressive migration | 2 to 4 weeks | 150 active clients at 6 months |
Mini case study
James, managing director of an office supplies distributor in London, processes 2,600 orders a month for 450 companies. Each manual order takes an average of 25 minutes across entry, checking, confirmation call and invoicing, about 1,080 hours a month. At a loaded cost of GBP 28 an hour, that is GBP 30,240 a month. A 20% cut in processing cost saves GBP 6,050 a month, or GBP 72,600 a year. With a GBP 85,000 platform and GBP 1,900 a month to run, the net gain is GBP 4,150 a month and payback comes in about 20 months on this saving alone, and sooner if the platform keeps key accounts away from competitors.
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FAQ
Will large companies agree to order online?
Procurement teams gain traceability and budget control, which drives adoption. With sales support, 30 to 40% of clients move online within 6 months.
Can we keep monthly invoicing on 30-day terms?
Yes, the platform groups the month's orders into one invoice per client, with a statement per department. The credit limit is checked before each order.
How are small orders paid?
Small businesses and one-off orders pay by card at roughly 1.5% plus a fixed fee, or by bank transfer. Confirmation is automatic via webhook.
What happens if a department exceeds its budget?
The order is blocked or escalated to the next approval level, according to the client's rule. Configuration takes under 5 minutes in the admin area.
How long until go-live?
Allow 4 to 5 months, including a 3-week pilot with 20 companies. The 4,000 SKU catalogue is imported from your existing file.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your client count, SKU count and back-office system: we will price your B2B platform between GBP 55,000 and 120,000 with a 4 to 5 month plan. Detailed quote within 48 h at kolonell.com/en/devis-gratuit. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
