What ALTERNATE does

ALTERNATE GmbH is a German online and mail-order retailer founded in 1992 and headquartered in Linden, Germany, with 501–1,000 employees. The company operates a multi-category e-commerce platform (alternate.de) offering more than 85,000 SKUs across consumer electronics, PC hardware, gaming, household appliances, garden equipment, tools, outdoor goods, toys, software, and emerging categories such as photovoltaics, sim racing, and smart home. Its core technology stack combines a proprietary storefront with integrated PC and Mac configurators, the epoq product-recommendation engine, Zoovu for guided selling/search optimization, Usercentrics for GDPR-compliant consent management, and Userlike for live chat.

The business runs two parallel storefronts: a consumer-facing shop with self-service configuration, refurbished, and outlet sections, and a dedicated B2B portal (alternate-b2b.de) offering project pricing, leasing, SEPA direct debit, net invoicing, and account management for businesses, government, and public institutions. Revenue is generated through transactional product sales on unit pricing, supplemented by financing options (Consors Finanz, Klarna, PayPal installments), the ALTERNATE Produktschutz extended warranty program (partnered with SPB Deutschland and Lifestyle Protection AG), and CO2-neutral shipping positioned as a first-in-industry differentiator. Distribution is via owned digital channels plus Idealo/Geizhals price-comparison listings and a multi-carrier logistics network (DHL, DPD, UPS, trans-o-flex, Zufall, DACHSER, GO!). The company is privately held, with no disclosed external investors or M&A history, and in December 2025 restructured its purchasing leadership into a three-person internal team under Managing Director Carsten Kellmann.

Name

ALTERNATE

Legal name

ALTERNATE GmbH

Website

https://alternate.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Linden

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Product Sales: Direct retail sales of consumer electronics, computer hardware, gaming equipment, household appliances, tools, garden equipment, toys, and outdoor products through the alternate.de e-commerce platform. Revenue generated through one-time product transactions with various payment methods including financing options (Consors Finanz, PayPal installments).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ALTERNATE operates a German online retail platform (alternate.de) selling over 85,000 products across consumer electronics, PC hardware, gaming equipment, household appliances, garden tools, toys, and software. The company offers custom PC configuration services through its PC-Konfigurator and Mac Konfigurator tools, a dedicated B2B portal (alternate-b2b.de) for business customers, and complementary refurbished, outlet, and daily deals sections.

Product overview

ALTERNATE operates a multi-category online retail platform (alternate.de) offering over 85,000 products across consumer electronics, PC hardware, gaming, home appliances, garden equipment, tools, outdoor gear, toys, and software. The core product is the ALTERNATE Online Shop, supported by complementary services including the PC-Konfigurator for custom-built gaming and professional PCs (featuring the own-brand ALTERNATE Custom PC Series aTTaX E-Sport), the Mac Konfigurator for Apple configurations, a dedicated Geschäftskunden B2B portal with tailored business services, the Refurbished section for certified pre-owned electronics, the ALTERNATE Outlet for clearance products, and TagesDeals for time-limited promotions. The ALTERNATE Produktschutz program provides extended warranty coverage in partnership with SPB Deutschland. The company also stocks specialized categories such as Photovoltaik (solar), SimRacing (racing simulators), and Smart Home (IoT devices). ALTERNATE differentiates through CO2-compensated shipping, its own custom PC brand, and B2B-specific services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ALTERNATE Online Shop Multi-category online retail platform with over 85,000 products across consumer electronics, PC hardware, gaming, home appliances, garden equipment, tools, outdoor gear, toys, and software. Serves German consumers and businesses with CO2-compensated shipping, multiple payment options, and a dedicated PC configurator.
• PC-Konfigurator (PC Builder) Interactive PC configuration tool allowing customers to customize and order bespoke desktop computers built to their specification. Supports ALTERNATE's own branded gaming PCs such as the aTTaX E-Sport series.
• Mac Konfigurator Apple Mac configuration tool allowing customers to customize Mac computers and order them built to specification through the ALTERNATE e-commerce platform.

Quantifiable outcome

• Award-winning customer service - 1st place in service test among 15 major German electronics retailers (September-October 2025)

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration35 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DHL (Deutsche Post AG)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary shipping partner for order delivery. ALTERNATE shares customer email addresses with DHL prior to delivery for delivery appointment coordination and delivery notifications.
• PayPalcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPayment processing partner offering PayPal, PayPal credit card, PayPal direct debit, and PayPal purchase on account/installment payment options.
• KlarnacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPayment service provider enabling customers to pay via invoice, installment plans, or direct debit with optional credit check and identity verification.
• AWIN AGminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPerformance advertising network partner for affiliate marketing, tracking transactions and commissions through cookies on customer devices.
• SPB Deutschland GmbHminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner for ALTERNATE repair cost insurance (Reparaturkostenversicherung), acting as intermediary for Lifestyle Protection AG insurance provider.
• Apple PaycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMobile payment service partner enabling Apple Pay payments through iOS, watchOS, and macOS devices with Face ID/Touch ID authentication.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Caseking: German specialist e-tailer for gaming PCs, modding, custom water cooling, and enthusiast hardware. Competes directly with ALTERNATE's gaming/PC configurator offering and serves overlapping enthusiast community.
• Reichelt Elektronik: German online electronics retailer focused on components, semiconductors, and computer peripherals. Comparable B2C/B2B e-commerce model with strong technical customer base similar to ALTERNATE's IT buyer segment.
• Cyberport: German electronics e-tailer offering computers, consumer electronics, gaming, and household products. Direct overlap with ALTERNATE's catalog breadth and target customer segments in Germany.
• Mindfactory: German online retailer specializing in PC components, hardware, and complete systems. Directly comparable to ALTERNATE on core PC/gaming/enthusiast e-commerce focus and target customer base of German PC builders.
• Notebooksbilliger.de: Major German online electronics retailer with strong focus on notebooks, PCs, and consumer electronics. Closely comparable multi-category electronics e-commerce model serving German consumers with similar breadth.

Broad incumbents

• MediaMarkt: Germany's largest consumer electronics retailer with extensive physical store network plus omnichannel operations. Competes with ALTERNATE on consumer electronics, gaming, and appliances, but with much broader scale and physical retail footprint.
• Otto: One of Germany's largest multi-category online retailers covering fashion, electronics, home, and more. Competes with ALTERNATE on cross-category consumer electronics and home appliance assortment but at much larger scale.
• Saturn: Major German consumer electronics retailer (sister brand to MediaMarkt under Ceconomy). Overlapping catalog across electronics, gaming, and home products but with broader physical retail presence.
• Amazon Germany: Germany's largest e-commerce platform with overwhelming breadth including consumer electronics, PCs, gaming, and home goods. Indirect but dominant competitive force that defines price expectations and logistics benchmarks across ALTERNATE's catalog.

Regional players

• Coolblue: Dutch/Belgian consumer electronics e-tailer that expanded to Germany, known for strong service and customer experience. Comparable electronics-first e-commerce model with similar service-led positioning, though primarily serving other geographies.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/alternate_de
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/Alternate
• Facebookfacebook.com/alternate.de
• Instagraminstagram.com/alternate.de
• TikToktiktok.com/@alternate.de
• Pinterestpinterest.de/alternatede
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alternategmbh

Compliance10 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ALTERNATE