Have you ever sold your old appliance digitally? Or Are you part of the 90’s trend to discard it in an unorganized fashion? Let’s check out how the fashion of reselling in India has transformed.
First, let us understand what Re-Commerce is.
Re-Commerce means the process of selling old appliances, previously owned, new, or used products through physical or online distribution channels to companies who are willing to repair, reuse, recycle or resell them afterward. Simply put, re-Commerce is the practice of reselling goods. Just think of your thrift stores, clothes boutiques, or pawn shops and you will get the picture. As these goods, need to be in good condition so that they can be presented and sold. Re-Commerce existed from the very beginning but in a very informal way, as people used to sell their old washing machines, sell old TV or sell old AC to local resellers. With the advent of time, there were many online platforms where one could buy or sell old appliances online, after which few customers would always send the products back. The reason for return- most of the products were not delivered in good or promised condition. This unorganized market and the mayhem around selling and buying old appliances forced customers to take easier options to go with the exchange plans with the brands or rely on a trusted and genuine platform.
Back in the ‘90s…
There was no organized sector present, until 2010 the resellers used to pick the product from the market and bring it back to the warehouses of various manufacturers and retailers, as the stocks were sold as stockpiles and not one by one. Later, the transport had to be organized for the stockpile. The buyers of these stockpiles would now search and sell to first-time buyers or people with budget constraints. This was how large appliance re-commerce happened in the ‘90s.
So what happened with the advent of organized retail like large format stores, e-commerce players, brand stores…
When the large format retail stores with modern trade functions like Vijay Sales came into the market, they had huge displays, and these display units needed to be sold. With the increase in the forward sales of these units, the market size of the re-commerce consumer base was also increasing. With the advent of the digital space and the digital revolution of the e-commerce Industry, brands like Flipkart and Amazon started to face an increase in the number of return cases. The return cases arose when the product that was delivered to the customer was damaged or not in an acceptable condition. When the customer opted for the return of the product, the brands started to acknowledge the need for an organized market to sort and resell these products.
In the year, 2008/2009/2010 the re-commerce and reverse logistics industries started to evolve and take an organized structure…
As per the latest stats, there are a lot of youngsters, couples, or families relocating every now and then. So, these people prefer buying a refurbished appliance for a lesser price than spending a hefty amount on the new one. The inclination and interest of people started to increase in the industry. It all started with mobile phones and devices and most people opted for the exchange of older devices. It later expanded to bigger appliances and so on. A lot of resellers and re-commerce players felt that this was the time the Indian economy was growing and there were aspirational buyers everywhere. This marked the pioneering moment when people thought of refurbishing, redesigning, or rebranding and then reselling the old appliances.
This marked the beginning of re-commerce websites that started to bloom. The customers now found an online place where they could directly sell their old appliances. But how is DIGI2L different…
DIGI2L is India’s first digital platform to sell used appliances. While other websites heavily dealt with mobile phones and other smaller gadgets, DIGI2L is specifically into large appliances. Considering the very huge market which is about 1.20cr units per annum. It is the first online platform with an organized market, where customer applies for selling their old appliance. After this, a thorough video quality check of their product is done to give fair pricing. This is followed by a doorstep pickup of the old appliance and instant payment at the time of pickup. DIGI2l makes the entire process of selling old appliances hassle-free, where the customer does not have to search for a buyer or worry about the transport of the old appliance. DIGI2L is customer-ready, price-ready, and payment ready.
Digi2l is India’s first organized re-commerce player in the large appliance category, which is functional across Pan India.
Today there are about 30,000 satisfied customers, who have organically drifted towards this platform looking at the ease and comfort that DIGI2L offers. DIGI2l offers customers the avenue to upgrade while not worrying about reselling their old appliances.
DIGI2L has tied up with giant logistics partners such as Mahindra, Bizlog, and Blue-dart to offer an effortless doorstep pickup experience. The logistic partners are trained to safely pickup the product and deliver it to the end vendors. DIGI2L is also running successful exchange programs with all the lead brands like Samsung, Bosch and Siemens, LG, and platforms like My Gate.
Digi2l’s Future endeavour…
DIGI2L aims to create effortless and convenient platform interphase for customers to sell their old appliances at the ease of their homes. The team is also working on a much-advanced version of the website for a customer to get an instant price quote by just entering their old appliance details. They are constantly working on expanding their social media platform reach and network to stay connected with their customers.
