Images: AppDirect Thrive 2024 Featuring Microsoft, Verizon, More

The worlds of technology advisors and marketplaces came together at the AppDirect Thrive conference in Chicago last week.

AppDirect hosted its first in-person national conference in five years. Gross merchandising value sales have grown 33% for the company during that time, executives said. Fifteen-year-old AppDirect has grown into a multibillion-dollar giant in the indirect B2B tech channel, with key investors like CDPQ and Mithril Capital backing it. AppDirect has reached $6 billion in revenue, according to a source.

The AppDirect Thrive conference showed the wide mix of customers and partners that work with the "relationship-driven" marketplace provider.

First, there are the companies that use AppDirect first and foremost as their marketplace engine. Some of the largest companies in the world, including Vodafone, ADP and Comcast, use AppDirect to power their digital commerce platforms.

The subscription commerce platform provider has also made its presence felt in the tech services distributor (TSDs) space, having bought multiple TSDs and formed relationships with the technology advisors (agents) associated with those TSDs. AppDirect executives said their company distinguishes itself from other TSDs by offering a deeper catalog of cloud software applications.

Related:Tech Advisors Get Hands on AppDirect Storefronts

And then there are partners that take advantage of AppDirect's recent acquisition of Builtfirst to create their own "storefronts."

"The lines are getting very blurry between an advisor, a provider and a buyer," said AppDirect chairman and CEO Nicolas Desmarais. "We could have a partner/client that's all three. More and more we have advisors that traditionally were just telecom advisors, who are now thinking, 'I want a marketplace, and I want to invoice for some services. AppDirect, I'd rather you invoice for some and I'd rather provide an invoice for others."

Partners listened to keynotes, met with vendor partners, networked with one another and explored an expo hall.

See visual highlights from AppDirect Thrive in the 15 images. We bet you'll see someone you know.

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