Canada’s so-called “second-hand economy,” typified by sales of products on consumer websites for example Kijiji and Craigslist, may be worth $28 billion, based on a brand new report.
“Canadians granted a second life to 24.9 million more products this season over last year, for a total of 1.85 billion objects,” according to the annual Kijiji Second-Hand Economy Index published Tuesday.
The report, based on data from a web-based consumer panel, looked at the acquisitions, rentals and disposals of new and used products which have had one or more owners.
It discovered that close to 70 percent of Canadians bought or sold second-hand goods within the last year, and said each Canadian spent typically $960 on used products and earned an average of $883 with the sale of products in 2015.
Clothing, shoes and accessories were typically the most popular product categories among consumers in the second-hand market, with 32.5 percent of transactions involving those categories. Entertainment-related items for example books, DVDs and CDs came in second place at 18.5 per cent, accompanied by baby goods and accessories, at 9.9 per cent.
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The report suggests the second-hand market gives a clear help to the Canadian economy, about $19 billion of the roughly $28 billion in transactions representing business activities that would not have access to otherwise occurred, as the remaining $9 billion represents business activities that’s shifted from the a new comer to the used market.
About 90 percent of the items that could have been purchased new are imported, the report says, so “the purchase of used goods in lieu of new goods represents an internet increase of nearly $8.1 billion in Canadian economic activity.”
The Kijiji report said 77 per cent of those who participate in the second-hand economy achieve this for that prospect of saving cash, while 70 percent view it as a way to get rid of household items they no more use.
The consumers surveyed said they believed these products they buy on classified ads websites are 48 per cent cheaper on average compared to what they could be if purchased through another channel.
Canadians acquired 34 second-hand products over the past year, down from 35 a year earlier. Of those, 17 were purchases and nine were donations. Canadians disposed of 43 products, up from 41 last year. Of these, 27 were donated and 10 were resold.
Financial Post
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