IKEA is trialling its personal second-hand on-line market so clients can promote to one another as an alternative of counting on buy-and-sell websites corresponding to eBay or Gumtree.
Ikea Second Hand Properties is already up and operating in Madrid and Oslo, and the Swedish furnishings big plans to launch the location globally in December.
This comes in opposition to a backdrop of regular development available in the market for second-hand furnishings, garments and tools.
The inducement will align with IKEA’s sustainability targets by reusing objects in order that they don’t find yourself in landfill. It should additionally assist the corporate make extra income from reselling its personal merchandise.
“After December, we’ll consider and resolve our subsequent steps. We’re beginning with Oslo and Madrid, however we’re aiming larger,” a spokesman mentioned.
The sale of used IKEA furnishings may be very widespread on on-line marketplaces together with Craigslist.
When trying to find “IKEA” on eBay, greater than 25,000 outcomes seem.
A seek for the retailer on Gumtree within the UK confirmed greater than 10,000 outcomes, whereas Shpock and Fb Market, which concentrate on native resale, additionally returned dozens of pages of outcomes.
Up to now, environmentalists have known as out furnishings producers for piling up massive quantities of plastic within the surroundings, harming marine wildlife. The issue is exacerbated by an onslaught of low-cost furnishings gross sales, which inspires folks to easily throw away furnishings they do not want as a result of it is too low-cost to purchase new objects.
Inexperienced campaigners stress the significance of a round financial system, which goals to reuse objects a number of instances. If an organization is accountable for the resale of its personal merchandise, there could also be a built-in incentive to make the merchandise extra sturdy, much less disposable, and thus extra sustainable.
Creating its personal on-line market would additionally permit IKEA to focus much less on bricks-and-mortar shops (that are costly and have excessive working prices) and extra on the rising areas of on-line gross sales and meeting companies.
Listings on IKEA Used Merchandise are posted by sellers, and IKEA’s algorithms generate detailed details about the objects, together with dimensions and authentic retail worth.
The corporate already affords the sale of second-hand items in a few of its shops.
