Custom Web Apps · for Marketplace founders
Custom Marketplace Platforms
In short
Aqib Ops builds two-sided marketplaces in 8–14 weeks. Each platform ships with separate supply and demand onboarding, a search/match engine, Stripe Connect escrow payments, dispute resolution flows, and a moderator console — the operational tooling marketplaces actually need but rarely budget for.
The problem
Marketplaces fail on the second side, not the first. Most builds budget 80% of effort on the consumer side and discover too late they need a complete moderator console, dispute system, and supply quality controls. Then they ship six months late.
Our approach
We build supply tooling in parallel with demand. Trust + safety is a first-class workstream, not a launch-week scramble. Payments use Stripe Connect with explicit escrow holds and refund flows from day one. Search starts simple (Postgres FTS + filters) and graduates to Typesense or Algolia only when scale demands it.
Stack we'd reach for
Next.js + tRPC
Type-safe across both sides of the marketplace.
Stripe Connect + Express
Escrow, payouts, KYC for sellers — battle-tested.
Typesense or Postgres FTS
Start cheap with FTS; graduate to Typesense when latency demands it.
Inngest
Durable payment captures, dispute timers, scheduled payouts.
Sentry + dispute analytics
Trust + safety needs observability built in.
What you'd get
- Two-sided onboarding (supply + demand) with KYC for sellers
- Search + match with filters, sort, saved searches
- Stripe Connect escrow + payout scheduling
- Dispute resolution flow with moderator console
- Ratings, reviews, and trust signals
- Moderator tools: bulk actions, supply audits, fraud flags
Recent example
A B2B services marketplace
Launched with 80 vetted suppliers and 600 demand-side accounts. Hit $180k GMV in month 4 on the back of working dispute and trust flows that competitors lacked.
Frequently asked
How much does a marketplace platform cost?
Most marketplace MVPs we ship land between $50k and $130k depending on payment complexity (escrow, multi-currency, instant payouts) and trust + safety requirements.
Should we use Sharetribe / Mirakl or build custom?
Sharetribe is great for vanilla two-sided rentals; Mirakl is for enterprise retail. If your model has any custom matching, search, or trust logic, you'll fight the platform within 6 months. Custom is usually better past PMF.
How do you handle escrow and payouts?
Stripe Connect with Express accounts: explicit escrow holds, scheduled payouts, KYC built in. We model the entire money flow before writing UI — refunds, partial payouts, disputes all fit in.
What about trust + safety from day one?
We ship a moderator console, fraud flags, supply quality audits, and dispute resolution as part of the MVP — not as v2. Marketplaces fail without these, and retrofitting them is 3x harder than building them in.
Can you handle international payments and tax?
Yes. We integrate Stripe Tax for sales tax / VAT, support multi-currency via Stripe, and design payout flows for international suppliers via Connect Standard or Express.
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