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Selling used cars or flats and even trading on e-Bay or Allegro has been an obvious practice for us for many years, but recently "reverse trade" or re-commerce or re-sale has changed its face dramatically. The last two years have been a breakthrough for this category, which has become a serious component of the entire e-commerce market. Experts predict its further development especially in response to increasing demands on companies and brands in light of the climate crisis.
According to Wikipedia, the definition of re-commerce, also called "reverse commerce", is: "The sale of previously owned, new or used products, mainly electronic devices or media such as books, through physical or online distribution channels to buyers who repair, if necessary, and then reuse, recycle or resell them". Re-commerce, however, is developing so rapidly that it already concerns almost every category - furniture, clothes, luxury goods, jewellery or games, so in fact it can be defined as all activities that concern the sale of all goods and second-hand products.
The activity of companies in this sector takes very diverse forms that can generally be classified in one of three groups:
e-commerce platforms and classifieds sites - these allow you (sometimes for a small fee) to advertise for sale or exchange. Thanks to that, a used item may go straight from the old owner to the new one. Examples of such sites are Amazon, OLX or Vinted, where the vast majority are simply individual consumers,
TradeIn & Recommerce services - i.e. companies focused on purchasing second-hand products, especially laptops, phones and other electronics, and then reselling them. They are a kind of online version of commission shops or well-known second-hand clothing stores. These items are usually repaired by specialists employed by the service. Representatives of this group include Gazelle and Momox,
Re-commerce activities of specific brands - sometimes the brand itself undertakes reverse commerce activities. It takes in items of its own production in order to refresh them, repair them and put them back on the market. At a lower price, of course, often with certification and warranty. This is what Apple does. And sometimes it is combined with charity actions. This is the case, for example, with ANSWEAR, which collects unwanted clothes, regardless of their manufacturer. It then turns them into fibres or repairs them and sells them for charity. Another example is the brand Patagonia, which has declared that it is ending its policy of perpetual growth and wants to put the principles of the circular economy into practice by reducing the sale of new clothes. The brand wants to buy back from customers their clothes that they no longer wear, then clean and repair them using the latest technology and put them back on sale, in line with its mission statement 'We're doing business to save the planet'.
The popularity of re-commerce has grown significantly in recent years and there is no indication that this trend will change. Just a few years ago, one could question the results of research on the growing awareness and involvement of consumers, for whom ecology is important or the impact of excessive consumption on environmental pollution, claiming that these are just declarations that do not translate into buyers' choices. Nowadays, however, there is no denying that the growing number of transactions in the re-commerce sector shows that declarations have been transformed into actual purchasing behaviour, which becomes an incentive for business.
According to Coresight Research, China's second-hand market was expected to be worth more than $178 billion in 2020, accounting for almost 46% of the Middle Kingdom's sharing economy. According to other reports, the second-hand market in Poland in 2020 also saw a remarkable increase in the value of turnover - by as much as 430%. And according to shopping platform ThredUp, the re-commerce category will double its value by 2025. By 2029, it is expected to be worth twice as much as the so-called fast fashion market. Research shows that 76% of second-hand buyers say they will increase their spending on second-hand goods in the next 5 years.
Research firm Kantar reports that 69 percent of consumers who buy second-hand products are looking to save money, 37 percent want to spend more on consumption and 46 percent aim to reduce waste. The main purchase motives thus revolve around the combined ecology and economy.
Increased consumer awareness, especially among the millennial generation and Z-ettes who are just entering adulthood, is causing revolutionary changes in the approach to commerce. It's no longer just Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, but the next green tenets: Rethink, Repurpose, Recover, and Refuse. A passing fad or whim is now turning into a long-term, irreversible trend that startups are picking up on and, with slogans like "Screw the novelty!", are urging people to use second-hand shops.
Buyers are increasingly looking at factors such as ending the use of plastic in products, biodegradable packaging and labelling, low-emission transport and proactive environmental measures. It is becoming increasingly important to them that the durable goods they buy do not break down after 2-3 years of use, or are so difficult to repair that the use of servicing is no longer worthwhile. The market is turning away from 'fast fashion' and even redefining vogue - in the spirit of minimalism or 'zero waste' and fair trade - for many people it is more important to have a few good quality, fairly made clothes than to fill their wardrobes with cheap, harmful polyester. Brands need to keep up with these expectations.
As consumer awareness of environmental issues continues to grow, activities that improve CSR are becoming increasingly important in purchasing decisions. The better customers perceive a brand, the greater the chance that they will choose its products again. Re-commerce activities, conducted in the spirit of caring for the planet, can positively influence brand perception and consumer loyalty. Consumers may also abandon products they have bought before and look for better alternatives for them, more in line with their values. This is an excellent opportunity to present your company as responsible and caring for the environment and offer your own services, precisely thanks to the re-commerce activity.
It is worth remembering that the employee is also a consumer. If the company's activities are conducted in a spirit which is consistent with his values, he is much more motivated to do his job well. Research shows that high corporate social responsibility has a very good impact on the productivity of employees, their comfort at work and team relations. And the more efficient the team is - the better results the whole company can achieve. Good brand perception is therefore important not only in the marketplace, but also within the organisation.
As you can see, re-commerce activity takes many forms and very quickly becomes something desirable and obvious for consumers. Sometimes it is a purely profit-making activity, other times it is a charitable one, and often it combines these two aspects at the same time, strongly involving and reinforcing the feeling that the consumer and the brands he or she chooses are working together in the name of shared values.
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