Carousell Country Head Malaysia Tang Siew Wai referring to the Carousell Recommerce Index 2021, says most Carousell users have experienced secondhand purchases, however, only a quarter chose to buy for environmental reasons.
“72% of Carousell Group users have made secondhand purchases before, of which 30% only buy secondhand whenever possible, and 21% chose to buy secondhand for environmental reasons.
“As we continue our efforts to ensure seamless, secure transactions, we hope to see an increase in those who choose secondhand as their first choice,” he says.
The index shows fashion remains the top category for most secondhand listing with women’s fashion dominating the top spot across the region while men’s fashion is also slowly catching up.
“Overall in the region, Fashion remains the top category with the most secondhand listings (29%), with Women’s Fashion dominating the top spot across the region, and Men’s Fashion becoming increasingly popular.
“28% of respondents have never made secondhand purchases because their top concern is the quality of the goods (68%),” he says.
The Carousell app champions recommerce of secondhand goods, and it is mainly about buying and selling used items. However, its purpose is also to address the issue of overconsumption hoping the sales will have a positive impact on the environment.
“Through recommerce, we can give used items a new lease on life, and reduce the demand and manufacture of new items, thus consuming fewer resources and generating less waste,” he says.
“We envision a world where secondhand is the first choice; we want to make transacting in a secondhand marketplace a convenient and trusted process, and one in which selling is as easy as snapping a photo on their phones,” he says.
Trends
Meanwhile, in terms of secondhand trends, Carousell saw an increase in listings during the pandemic when most users started to work from home (WFH).
“In terms of secondhand trends, during the pandemic when most people started to work from home, we saw an increase in listings when people started decluttering and selling the unused/underutilized items they found in their homes.
“As more people realised they could sell these items that were just sitting around the house, the supply increased along with the demand, as more people began to buy secondhand items they needed instead of buying new during the time.”
Carousell saw increased activity in other categories such as electronics and furniture, thanks to Movement Control Orders.
“Categories that saw increased activity for the various Movement Control Orders included electronics such as computers and furniture for online schooling and work-from-home practices.
“Fashion remains the top category for both demand and supply, with Men’s Fashion ranking first in 2020 on Carousell Malaysia for both demand and supply, superseding Women’s Fashion,” he says.
Safe And Conducive Environment
In Carousell, Tang emphasizes the trust and safety in Carousell remain the top priority in building a safe and conducive environment in merchant transition.
“Trust and safety continue to be a top priority for us, and we remain focused on building a safe and conducive environment for everyone to sell and buy online,” he says.
He also reminds users to be more vigilant during merchant trade, to take extra precautions in every step, and to report any suspicious or doubtful activity.
“We encourage users to opt for Carousell Protection, our trusted in-app payments solution, which assures users by holding payment until a transaction is verified successfully by both buyer and seller.
“Always take steps to protect themselves, check seller ratings, and report any suspicious accounts or listings to our team by selecting the listing and clicking on ‘report listing’ or selecting the account and clicking on ‘report account’.
“Our Integrated Shipping with PosLaju makes the selling process easier and faster – deliveries can be prepared at home and dropped off at any of the PosLaju outlets all over Malaysia.
“In essence, we want to build a system that inspires everyone in the world to start selling, and we want them to feel safe and confident doing so. When users deal directly with other users, being able to trust that a transaction will be successful is extremely important,” he concludes.
Iffah Salleh contributed to the article
