If your agency is re-evaluating MarketTime, Brandboom is the alternative built for apparel and lifestyle agencies. Agencies usually start looking for one of three reasons: their lines sit outside MarketTime's gift and home core, MarketTime's product line keeps changing as it absorbs other rep and vendor software, or they want a second platform so one system isn't a single point of failure. The right fit depends on the problem you most need solved: writing orders across many lines at market, keeping your buyer list private or reconciling commissions, and on whether your brands invoice inside the platform.

Key takeaways

• Current product: MarketTime belongs to Foundry Holdings and offers its own order-writing app.
• Consolidation: MarketTime has merged with or acquired other rep and vendor software companies, so more platform changes are likely.
• Fit: MarketTime is strongest in gift and home; apparel and lifestyle agencies should test multi-brand ordering and buyer privacy before committing.
• Brandboom: one login and one cart across brands, a customer list brands can't see, and commission tracking for invoices created in Brandboom.

Why are agencies looking for alternatives?

MarketTime has a small public review footprint, but four themes come up.

• Consolidation: MarketTime has merged with or acquired other rep and vendor software companies and has joined Foundry Holdings. Each combination can change apps, pricing and support, so agencies are re-checking whether the platform still matches how they sell.
• User satisfaction: some public reviews are pointed. One App Store reviewer wrote: "I cannot believe that market time is the best this industry can offer."
• Category fit: MarketTime's network is built around gift and home. Agencies carrying apparel, accessories or lifestyle lines may find their brands already sell through other platforms.
• Single-platform risk: when every line runs through one system, any disruption stops orders for the whole agency. Keeping a second channel limits that risk.

What does MarketTime do well?

MarketTime has a strong gift and home network. Its agency back office includes commission statements, check logs, zip-code territories and offline order writing (main office license required). If most of your brands are gift and home vendors already on MarketTime and you reconcile commissions with its check logs, switching your whole agency may cause more disruption than it fixes.

Which alternatives fit a multi-line agency?

• Rep order-writing apps: simpler iOS and web apps suit agencies that want a familiar rep app and don't need deep apparel features; check offline reliability on booth Wi-Fi.
• Brand-bought enterprise portals: brands buy these and invite you in, so they don't replace an agency-wide tool.
• Brandboom: built around the relationship between brands and reps, and works from both sides.

What should an agency check before switching?

Check the problems that cost you the most first, then pilot before you move every line.

• Market-floor order writing: test offline mode on the devices your reps carry, on real booth Wi-Fi.
• Multi-brand ordering: confirm one login covers all your lines and that one store's order splits correctly by brand.
• Buyer privacy: confirm who can see your customer list and when each brand sees orders.
• Commissions: ask where each brand invoices; a platform can usually only calculate commission on invoices it can see.
• Data portability: export your customer list and open orders from your current platform before you change anything.

How does Brandboom compare with MarketTime?

Where does Brandboom go further than MarketTime?

Brandboom goes further than MarketTime on analytics and no-code integrations, and roughly matches it on commissions.

What else does Brandboom include?

• One order per store, split across lines: the Pro app builds "a single unified cart" and "automatically creates multiple orders… splitting them correctly by showroom" (Brandboom Pro announcement). The app is rated 5.0 from 11 ratings (a small sample).
• One link for every line: a Company Showroom combines presentations from all your brands. Buyers can order with just an email address.
• Department-store accounts: the rep or brand can write the order and send it for the buyer to approve. In Brandboom's experience, buyers from Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's, Harvey Nichols and Kith have received orders through Brandboom.
• Plans: Brandboom plans start at $50/month for the Basic plan (see all plans).

FAQ

What is the best MarketTime alternative for a rep agency?

The best MarketTime alternative depends on the problem your agency needs to solve, such as order writing at market, buyer privacy or commissions. Brandboom suits apparel and lifestyle agencies that want one login and one cart across brands, a customer list brands can't see, and commission reports for invoices created in Brandboom.

How should an agency evaluate or migrate to a different order-writing platform?

Start with the problems that cost you the most: order writing at market, buyer privacy or commissions. Run a pilot with one or two lines at a single market, export your customer list and open orders before you switch, and confirm where each brand invoices, since commission tracking depends on it. Test offline mode on the devices your reps actually use, and ask each vendor for hands-on onboarding help.

Can my brands see my customer list on Brandboom?

No. On Brandboom, an outside rep's customer list is shared only with the rep's own account or team. You also choose when each brand sees your orders: never, when opened, when placed (the default) or when completed. Brandboom's showroom page puts it plainly: "Brands see the orders but not your buyer relationships."

Related questions

• Showroom and rep management
• How do I create a digital wholesale showroom buyers can order from remotely?