eBay steps up refurbished product competition with Amazon

eBay is building upon its existing Certified Refurbished program.

The e-commerce marketplace is opening eBay Refurbished, a new online storefront for like-new products. The rollout of eBay Refurbished expands the October 2020 launch of the Certified Refurbished section of the eBay site. Chief eBay rival Amazon launched its own refurbished product storefront, Amazon Renewed, in 2017.

eBay Refurbished offers refurbished items from brands including Apple, Samsung and Dyson, all backed with a one- or two-year warranty. Through this new offering, the deeply discounted inventory is sourced directly from premium brands or top-rated sellers, with a thorough vetting process. Building on the Certified Refurbished offering, eBay Refurbished now includes multiple condition grades and a wider range of price points on like-new products.

Shoppers can choose from the following four eBay Refurbished product conditions:

• Certified Refurbished: Items are in pristine, like-new condition, backed by a two-year warranty, and come in new packaging with manuals and accessories.
• Excellent: Items are in like-new condition, backed by a one-year warranty, and come in new packaging with manuals and accessories.
• Very Good: Items show minimal wear, are backed by a one-year warranty, and come in new packaging.
• Good: Items show moderate wear, are backed by a one-year warranty, and come in new packaging.

All products sold via eBay Refurbished come with Allstate warranties, free shipping, eBay’s money-back guarantee, and free 30-day returns.

At the time eBay initially introduced its Certified Refurbished program, the company said it would continue to evolve its refurbished e-commerce experience for buyers and sellers on its marketplace, including new categories and brand partnerships. In addition to its new eBay Refurbished offering, the retailer also provided small sellers a new resale opportunity in November 2020.

Called BULQ on eBay, the service enables small sellers to purchase and resell excess inventory from large retailers. Launched in partnership with end-to-end return platform Optoro, BULQ on eBay allows sellers to seamlessly purchase and resell liquidation lots on the eBay marketplace.

According to eBay, it saw a 170% year-over-year surge in sales during Cyber Weekend 2020, which it attributes at least partially to the introduction of its refurbished products program. The retailer also cites several supporting statistics from a recent survey of 1,000 U.S. adults it commissioned with Wakefield Research, including:

• 62% of respondents are considering buying refurbished electronics.
• 84% of respondents are open to receiving refurbished gifts this holiday season.
• Nearly half (47%) of respondents have gifted a refurbished item in the past - up from 32% in 2020. This includes 64% of millennials who have already gifted a refurbished item, up from 48% in 2020.
• Two-thirds (66%) of respondents believe gifting refurbished items is also a way to shop sustainably.

"We're heading into a different type of holiday shopping season, dominated by supply chain challenges and changing consumer behaviors," said Dawn Block, VP of hard goods and collectibles at eBay. "Amidst strong demand for like-new products, eBay Refurbished is making it even easier for shoppers to access hundreds of thousands of coveted items at substantially lower prices, in one trusted experience."  

Founded in 1995 in San Jose, California, eBay enabled over $85 billion of gross merchandise volume in 2020.