Ikea is shaking up the second-hand market with the launch of its own online marketplace, Ikea Preowned. The platform allows customers to sell their used Ikea furniture directly to each other, cutting out the middleman and reducing the reliance on popular buy-and-sell websites like eBay and Gumtree.
Currently operating in Madrid and Oslo, Ikea plans to expand its Preowned platform globally by December. The move comes as the market for second-hand furniture, clothes, and equipment continues to grow steadily.
Not only does the initiative align with Ikea’s sustainability goals by promoting the reuse of items to prevent them from ending up in landfills, but it also presents an opportunity for the company to increase profits from the resale of its own goods.
A spokesperson for Ikea stated, “After December we will evaluate and decide on the next steps. We start in Oslo and Madrid, yet our ambition is higher.” The decision to launch Ikea Preowned follows the popularity of used Ikea furniture sales on various online marketplaces, with thousands of listings appearing on sites like eBay, Gumtree, Shpock, and Facebook Marketplace.
Environmentalists have long criticized furniture makers for contributing to plastic pollution and waste in the environment. By encouraging a circular economy where items are reused multiple times, Ikea’s move towards a dedicated second-hand marketplace could incentivize the production of more durable and sustainable products.
In addition to promoting sustainability, the launch of Ikea Preowned allows the company to shift its focus towards online sales and assembling services, reducing the reliance on costly brick-and-mortar stores.
Listings on Ikea Preowned are created by the seller, with Ikea’s algorithms generating details such as measurements and original retail prices. The company already offers a pre-owned item service in some of its stores, indicating a commitment to promoting the resale and reuse of its products.
