Retail Revival Grows Internationally, Helping Local Businesses Expand Their Sales Online

eBay partners with local city leaders in regions across the world to develop innovative small business programs that address specific retail challenges and scale solutions to benefit entrepreneurs across different communities. Through programs like Retail Revival, and its international adaptations like Export Revival, local business owners receive training and coaching to sell their unique inventory on a global marketplace, while strengthening ties within their local business community.

Austin, Texas

This month, eBay proudly launched Retail Revival in Austin, Texas, home to a rich community of artisans, entrepreneurs and small business owners eager to expand their reach. The Austin cohort includes 50 sellers, whose products span everything from ceramics and bicycles, to sustainable fashion and gourmet cotton candy. 

Mike Petersen, general manager of the Austin office, kicked off the event with a warm introduction to eBay, followed by remarks from Marni Levine, eBay’s vice president of seller operations and engagement, on how eBay operates as a true partner to its sellers. 

Participating sellers enjoyed a full day of training on pricing strategies, listing optimization and inventory management, among other important tools and strategies for building a successful eBay business. Training sessions were led by the eBay global customer experience team, with support from members of eBay’s third-party partnerships team, as well as seller guests, Rocky Schiano and Angie Cardona-Nelson. 

The audience also heard from Sylnovia Holt-Rabb, deputy director of economic development for the city of Austin, and Christopher Van Bergen, CFO/COO of Nest, an organization that promotes artisans around the world and has partnered with eBay to support Retail Revival Austin through specialized outreach and training.

Athens, Greece

We also recently welcomed 67 Greek businesses in Athens, Greece to Export Revival, a regional spin-off of Retail Revival focused on expanding the trading reach of participants. Benefits of Export Revival include monthly training sessions taught by eBay experts, customized support, exposure to more than 183 million buyers in 190 global markets, a dedicated page on eBay.com highlighting the participants’ products and a promotional campaign on eBay.

Over 120 guests attended the Export Revival Greece kick-off event. Sellers enjoyed  introductory training, and a fireside chat with Greek sellerKonstantinos Spiliadisanda. Attendees also heard from Gregoris Zarifopoulos, Greek Minister for Digital Governance; Yiannis Chatzitheodosiou, President of the Athens Chamber of Commerce; and Ilya Kretov, General Manager Global Emerging Markets - Emerging Europe, LatAm, APAC at eBay, among others.

“Greece has unique products and a strong export potential, as proven over time,” said Kretov. “About 12,000 sellers from Greece are already active on the eBay platform—many of them for more than a decade. In 2019 alone, they sold and exported nearly 1 million items. Together with our partners in Greece, we are working hard to keep these numbers thriving.” 

The program is being offered under the auspices of the Ministry of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Media and the Municipality of Athens, and is supported by ACT – Athens Chambers of Tradesman, SEV – Hellenic Federation of Enterprises.

Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Fifty local businesses completed their training at eBay’s Export Revival program in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, at the end of 2019. Through the four-week training program, participants learned to effectively sell online through product presentation and strategic sales tactics. By the end of the training, participants had learned to create their own eBay stores, list and manage inventory, and process their first sales.

The program aims to increase Bulgaria’s exports by supporting small and medium-sized businesses to sell locally sourced goods online to global consumers. Since the launch, the Plovdiv region has seen rapid economic growth, attracting investments and establishing new businesses in the area. 

These online stores are now accessible to 183 million eBay customers worldwide and meet the most up-to-date requirements for convenient functionality and accessibility. Sellers’ products are presented on a specially designed page, Made in Bulgaria, a destination for customers looking to learn more about Bulgarian products and sellers. Over 8,000 products spanning women's fashion, baby goods, auto parts, leather wear, souvenirs, watches and car parts are available for purchase.

The Export Revival program in Bulgaria is backed by the Ministry of Economy, the Executive Agency for Promotion of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and the Municipality of Plovdiv.

Visit Made in Bulgaria to learn more about Bulgarian products and watch seller testimonials.

Export Revival is an international adaptation of eBay’s global Retail Revival initiative, which has launched in more than 10 cities in the U.S., UK, Germany, Canada, Ireland, Israel and Russia, propelling international sales for hundreds of companies across the globe. Each participating city has seen economic growth and an increase in exports of locally produced products.