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Will Greater Convenience Help eBay Grow Its Luxury Resale Offerings?
Second-hand luxury is hot, and eBay is expanding its own offerings on this front with the launch of a consignment service that provides customers with direct access to expert sellers who can list items on their behalf. The consignment service will initially sell new and pre-owned handbags before expanding into other luxury categories in 2024.
The service aims to help everyday consumers gain an air of authenticity on eligible items. Expert sellers handle every part of the transaction, from photography to pricing, to ensure the listing is competitive and professional. Additionally, eBay gives items with price tags of $500 or more an eBay Authenticity Guarantee checkmark and sends them through its authentication process once they are purchased. The consignment service will initially be powered by Linda Lightman, founder of Linda’s Stuff, who has operated a consignment shop on eBay for more than 20 years.
The service builds on other programs recently launched by eBay, including Certified by Brand, a service that lets brands and authorized retailers directly sell their own secondhand merchandise. The retailer also acquired Certilogo, an AI-powered authentication provider, to help it find additional opportunities.
“Our top priority is to respond to the ever-evolving needs of our customers, and continuously delight luxury shoppers and sellers,” said Tirath Kamdar, global GM of luxury at eBay. “Launching a consignment service builds on the momentum of offerings like Authenticity Guarantee and Certified By Brand, giving our customers more trusted ways to buy and sell on the marketplace.”
Guaranteeing authenticity and building trust are vital elements for success in luxury resale. A November 2022 study by BoF Insights and eBay found that physical authentication is the most important feature for motivated shoppers looking to buy second-hand luxury fashion.
While luxury is taking the spotlight, eBay has been rolling out tools to make selling second-hand items more convenient across all categories. One of its latest options is an “image-based magical listing tool” that lets sellers take or upload a photo and has AI fill in the details, including category and sub-category information. The AI can even handle suggesting a listing price and shipping cost.
Convenience seems to be the theme across both of these launches. Competition is building in the resale space as more retailers seek to take control of their own second-hand markets, according to a study by thredUP, but offering the best customer experience for sellers as well as buyers might be the key to eBay remaining at the top.
Discussion Questions
Will the consignment service meaningfully help a broader audience sell their luxury items on eBay? What does eBay need to do in order to keep ahead of other retailers opening resale marketplaces for their own products?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Mark Ryski
Founder, CEO & Author, HeadCount Corporation
Ken Morris
Managing Partner Cambridge Retail Advisors
There are two good features here. First, the consignment service which is a useful addition because some sellers do not enjoy creating and managing listings; others don’t have the experience in doing it, especially if they only sell occasionally. Second, authentication removes one of the big barriers to buying secondhand luxury – the risk of getting a fake item. I feel eBay is on the right track with these additions. Next it needs to look at site navigation and search, which can be confusing.
A consignment service adds another important way for resellers and buyers to use eBay, and the Certified by Brand and other tools will help make the offering more attractive. eBay is right to be investing in tools to make the process easier. The second-hand market is not only big and growing, but it’s right in eBay’s wheelhouse.
This is a good way to get people who wouldn’t normally list on eBay to do so. The “magic” is in making it easy, which is stated in the last paragraph: “Convenience seems to be the theme across both of these launches.”
We had very good results through Poshmark when my brother-in-law died during the pandemic – I wonder if eBay is several years too late? Poshmark has already built its network of sellers and a broad base of buyers. eBay might position itself as the way for “casual” selling when you only have one or two items (but even then I’d ask around to see who in your friend circle has a PM seller account and just go that way.)
eBay, I would assume, already has a big jump on other resale sites by virtue of size (which is all-important). I don’t think they need to do anyhting differently, but I do think they need to stay ahead of potential problems; after – or maybe right along side – size in importance is reputation, and eBay’s genesis as a loosely organized group of amateur sellers makes policing difficult.
I think the key here is the authenticity check. You really need to sell the original not a knock off. One slip and the credibility goes out the window. The consignment idea is very good and will resonate with the market place.
Ebay has the scale and infrastructure to make a compelling proposition for the luxury resale market. They are already ahead of most retailers with removing many of the known barriers for entry into the resale market for both buyers and consumers.
To stay one step ahead, eBay should continue to build the Certified by Brand business to establish a leading market share among competitors. They will also need to stay attuned to consumer sentiment. All it takes is a few influential naysayers to turn luxury resale upside down. They would want to be ahead of that.
With sustainability more top-of-mind for consumers, especially Gen Z, than five to 10 years ago, the secondhand market is growing quickly, projected to reach $77 billion by 2025.
While these features specific to luxury items will certainly be a win for that market segment, the real stand out here is eBay’s implementation of AI to improve the seller experience, such as the “image-based magical listing tool.” Features like this make selling convenient while boosting the quality of product listing with little added effort on the seller’s part. The return is a better experience for buyers who will find it easier to shop quickly and successfully.