Can’t find that holiday gift? Check out eBay! – WWD

While supply chain is a big concern this holiday season for both consumers and retailers, the resale market did not miss a beat continued access to fashion, accessories and luxury items.

Serving as its own kind of ecosystem, resell Consumers are attracted by shopping on eBay because they are realizing the value of the items in both the present and the future. According to Charis Márquez, head of fashion at eBay, continued access to fashion, accessories, and luxury goods to meet the growing population of thoughtful consumers has created the “perfect storm” for resell industry.

Notably, one of eBay’s strongest categories is sneakers, with the company’s recent data showing that eBay’s athletic shoe category has continued to grow at a double-digit rate. A pair of sneakers is purchased on the site every 1.5 seconds, and the women’s athletic shoe category alone has grown by more than 80% in the past year.

Empowering sellers and buyers of this catalog, eBay recently launched its new eBay 3D true view technology, allowing shoppers to inspect the item they’re browsing from any angle to mirror when they hold it. on hand. In an official statement, eBay said this new capability is important to those who buy pre-owned items and look forward to using the technology to list more in the coming months.

As the holidays draw nearer, Márquez shares insights into the future of luxury resale, eBay’s growing space for buyers, and changing consumer sentiment.

WWD: How has eBay seen buyer and seller behavior change during the pandemic?

Charis Márquez: Everyone in the game, you know, right now, and what we’re seeing, and among the most interesting parts, is this kind of alternative asset where we have now this generation. [says] I don’t have money right and I don’t know if I understand the ups and downs of stocks and real estate but I got this beautiful pair of shoes. [They] be able to understand and appreciate an item and will have some of its value in the future, it’s not just because I wear it today but it’s a real long-term purchase being viewed as an alternative asset class now by this generation.

We’ve been talking about openness for a long time just to resell and use, but I think it’s this element that people are building businesses with. This generation is really building a business out of it, while I think if you look at many other generations, they would say more, “I want a Rolex to say I got this job” or “I want to have a bag designer when I shoot, no matter what age.” Now, it’s also [consumers saying], “I bought this because I know that if I get sick of it after a certain amount of time, someone will really appreciate it later on.”

WWD: What are shoppers looking for when shopping on eBay?

CM: Part of why our authenticity guarantee is so important is because they’re looking for items they believe will be valuable. When we talk about this generation, they are really looking for investments.

For Gen Z, it’s silly to buy new, isn’t it? While my generation [says] “I don’t want this used t-shirt or sweater,” but we are the ones selling it. And then Gen Z buys it because it fits into a value system.

As for what people are searching for, they want to feel as though they can trust the product they’ve purchased, so we have a guarantee of authenticity there. And for more expensive items like Rolex, we also have the basic protections there that people are looking for but again, it’s really just about being unique and different. people looking for.

When we think about the transition to the holiday, I think – I won’t say for the first time – but it’s probably more and more common that people are willing to pre-own from a gift perspective. I think people have always been like that, some people have been satisfied with that with themselves but now because of everything that the supply chain is scarce this, that, that, I think there are still loopholes.

EBay is really well positioned because we have all that unique and different. I was shopping for my kids because they would say something random and I didn’t know where to find it. EBay is a great place for that just because we’ve got so many new and different things.

We’ve just seen so much happening in the world between being more purposeful, more purposeful, that I think the pandemic has upset all the trust we once had. And that focus is flowing into everything we do. And now looking at the supply chain it’s becoming a perfect storm knowing that you have to really think about this differently and know that you can’t just go and wait for Black Friday and hope. that I will find what I need.

WWD: EBay has a whole section dedicated to luxury gift giving for the holidays – how did you manage to increase the value of luxury and where do you see it going?

CM: Ultimately, when reselling, you’re looking for something unique and different. And if you want to know where you’ll find the greatest breadth and depth of resale, you’ll head to eBay. Even if you don’t love our experience like some other platforms, you won’t find just any kind. And people are looking for things that are unique and different, and that’s really part of that self-expression.

In particular, for luxury, what works for us is our authenticity. That assurance has been a game changer for us as it is good for buyers and sellers. We have a lot of buyers who are sellers and they all become part of the community, and protecting both sides and that kind of middleman makes a huge difference when people say, “Yes. , I am willing to try on eBay” and “I feel comfortable if I choose to sell on eBay. “It keeps it in the ecosystem.

WWD: How does eBay encourage users to stay in its ecosystem?

CM: One factor that really helps us stay in the ecosystem is that we encourage continuing to sell after you’ve bought. We have an NFC enabled tag that if you touch it with your phone you can see it will take you straight to all the information on that tag in the list so if you ever want to go back the list Again, we’ll make it super easy.

Buyers will have less regrets as we’re making it really easy if you choose to resell it or if you just want information about this handbag or sneakers. An NFC tag is an actual physical little tag but having that digital document is like when you buy a piece of art and you have that piece of paper, now we have that digital document. That is really powerful for us.

WWD: How has seller behavior changed during the pandemic?

CM: We have certainly seen during COVID-19, people are building their businesses. We have a lot of stories about people who had their normal jobs, then went to eBay and started selling sneakers or trading cards because they got a little bit interested in a category and it ended up going. become a real business. there is a seller who is literally a lawyer and is currently making a lot of money as an eBay seller and is actually trying to do it full time.

People usually just look at their passion and we’re definitely seeing more momentum in that. If we look at the last 18 months, how many people really just say, “my wardrobe might actually have some value, so can I make a small business out of it?” ?”

WWD: How does eBay work with sellers as partners?

CM: We connect a lot with them. Had a lot of facts with them and we talked through the data, we went through the business research that we did with them. Whenever we have new kind of information, we actually share it with them in those categories and then we get information from them too.

From CEOs down, we all spend time with sales people just to understand what they have in common and vice versa, like they are chatting with us about their trends. We talked to them about the supply chain to see if they were affected by it. We’re very well connected, and when we have those data points to share or update the terminology we recommend using, they’re really receptive.