eBay launched the Certified Refurbished Hub in March this year, in response to the ‘like-new for less’ buying trend. They have seen 1 refurbished item sell every 14 seconds over the past 12 months, as the nation has looked to not only save money on tech and appliances, but do their bit to save the planet.
According to a United Nations report, more than 53 million tonnes of e-waste was generated worldwide in 2019 – over 9 million tonnes more than five years ago. eBay’s Certified Refurbished hub looks to extend the lifespan of items by restoring them to a brand new condition and selling them at low price points.
Certified Refurbished items also come with a 12 month guarantee and are protected by eBay’s Money Back Guarantee which means consumers can shop with confidence and save money. These items are in a pristine, like-new condition and are inspected, cleaned and refurbished by either the manufacturer itself, or a manufacturer-approved seller.
This is great news for refurbishers selling on eBay, but even if you’re not able to sell on eBay’s Certified Refurbished Hub it’s still good news as we know that consumers that shop in one category on eBay tend to spread future purchases across all categories. It’s important for eBay to have a high profile in this vertical, and (dare I say it) this is an area where they can easily excel over Amazon where the main focus is on brand new merchandise.
The Certified Refurbished lifecycle
This is what the of a Certified Refurbished product looks like, from being bought as brand new, to being sold as like-new.
- Customer buys a brand new product
- Product is returned with little or no damage
- Product is expertly restored and vetted to work like-new
- Product is packaged in original or new packaging with accessories and new manuals
- Product is sold as Certified Refurbished on eBay’s Certified Refurbished Hub with a 12 month warranty and protected by eBay Money Back Guarantee
What type of products can you expect to find?
As you would expect, products are from all tech categories including mobile, computing, and household appliances: