Ikea plans expand its second-hand marketplace after successful pilots in Oslo and Madrid.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Jesper Brodein, CEO of Ikea’s largest franchisee Ingka said its trial of the DIY retailer’s Preowned service has been extended nationwide across Norway and Spain, and will run until August.
Brodin said: “We have decided to expand it from Madrid to Spain, and from Oslo to Norway. In a couple of years, we want to scale it up to all markets in Europe.”
The furniture giant’s trial in Oslo and Madrid led to around 200,000 shoppers visiting its Preowned website.
Although Brodin “couldn’t say” what the platform’s financial contribution was, he explained “the customer engagement side” was “strong enough” to make a compelling case for the expansion of the offer to Spanish and Norwegian shoppers.
“Sometimes you have to go with the gut. This is a market and a movement in society, and if we would stay outside we couldn’t take part in it,” he explained.
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Brodin added that Ikea has attempted a number of initiatives to drive the sustainability of its offer, but said “it’s only with Preowned that we found the value to compete with Ebay or Depop.”
Ikea launched its secondhand peer-to-peer marketplace in August for shoppers to sell their unwanted furniture to each other amid the rise in demand for second-hand goods.
The move formed part of the brand’s transformation away from being an out-of-town retailer to offering online, city centre stores, more collection points and services such as assembly.
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