Behind the scenes
Secondhand shopping is in vogue at Digitec Galaxus
18.8.2021
Translation: Veronica Bielawski
Pictures: Thomas Kunz
Customers bought used products almost twice as often on digitec and Galaxus compared to last year. And this year’s shaping up to be another strong one in terms of growth. The most-sold items on both online shops are currently mobile phones, graphics cards and monitors.
Browsing for bargains in the secondhand section of digitec and Galaxus, you’ll find more than returned items for sale marked «used + tested» or «as good as new + tested». You’ll also find secondhand offers you can purchase directly from other customers. Since the autumn of 2017, customers have been able to sell products they purchased from digitec or Galaxus directly on the respective website. These products can be anything – a mobile phone that’s been gathering dust, a last-generation game console, or a deck chair that no longer fits the new balcony.
More and more online shoppers are making use of this selling option. In 2020, used item sales were up 96 per cent. And it’s shaping up to be another year of strong growth. In the first half of 2021, private individuals already sold two thirds as many secondhand products as in the whole of 2020. Product Owner Zara Hegemann is responsible for the Digitec Galaxus resale platform. It’s a matter close to her heart. «By offering this easy, fast and safe way to sell secondhand items, fewer used products end up in the trash can or recycling bin,» explains Zara. «This is good both for the environment and our customers’ wallets.»
Not to give too much away to the competiton, Zara keeps the number of items sold and the sales figures under wraps. But she does reveal some other exciting figures, for instance, the share of secondhand sales on digitec compared to Galaxus. In 2020, around 75 per cent of sales took place on digitec, while 25 per cent were on Galaxus. «A resale market for electronics has definitely established itself on digitec,» Zara says. Still, the share of secondhand sales in the online department store Galaxus is growing rapidly: back in 2019, it was still only 18 per cent.
A success rate of 44 per cent
On average, 44 per cent of secondhand offers by customers on digitec and Galaxus are sold. The remaining 56 per cent of offers expire – the price of the used ping-pong table may have been too high, or perhaps there’s a deep scratch on the display of the mobile phone. «Forty-four per cent is a remarkable rate,» Zara says. Zara speculates that this may be in part due to the high proportion of electronics being offered. After all, used mobile phones are more attractive than, say, a used wardrobe. «In addition, the offers generally get a lot of traffic thanks to our shops’ large customer base.» More than 2 million customers made purchases on digitec or Galaxus in 2020.
That same year, customers selling the following secondhand products had the highest success rates:
- Fan controllers: 77%
- Heart rate belts: 77%
- Webcams: 76%
- External optical drives: 75%
- Mobile phone VR headsets: 75%
- Styluses: 75%
- Headphone stands: 73%
- Streaming media players: 72%
- Notebook stands: 71%
- Powerlines: 71%
However, in absolute terms, Digitec Galaxus customers sold mainly used mobile phones last year, followed by PC monitors, graphics cards, headphones and notebooks.
Alex Hämmerli
Senior Public Relations Manager
Alex.Haemmerli@digitecgalaxus.chAt Digitec and Galaxus, I’m in charge of communication with journalists and bloggers. Good stories are my passion – I am always up to date.
Sustainability
Follow topics and stay updated on your areas of interest
126 comments
later