The recycling of gifts (reuse, to say it in more positive terms) it is certainly not a novelty of Christmas 2021. What has changed in the holidays just ended is the way it happens.
According to an elaboration by the Codacons, more or less a quarter of Christmas gifts end up being recycled, and in Italy there is a real surge in the use of apps, social networks and ecommerce sites where the less welcome gifts find a new life: according to the association, “the possibilities offered by technology have radically changed the habits of Italians”, and if before the less appropriate or in any case unwelcome gifts ended up at the bottom of a wardrobe or were re-gifted to unsuspecting relatives and friends, today they can be monetized through online platforms created precisely to sell unused clothing, accessories or products.
Startup
The founder of ShippyPro: “Let’s make small ecommerce businesses competitive with Amazon”
by Silvio Gulizia
Where do the gifts we don’t like go?
As mentioned, according to estimates, the gifts exchanged this Christmas would be more or less 25% ended up in the recycling round: of these, about 50% are re-gifted, 17% is or will be returned in store and replaced with other products or with vouchers and well 33% is offered for sale online, turning a wrong gift into a profit opportunity.
The association does not list the sites and apps involved and preferred in our country, but it is easy to imagine what they might be:
- eBay, perhaps the most famous online sale and auction site, which in this period has obviously activated a wide series of promotions and discounts that seem to be made precisely for the recycling of gifts (or for the search for rare and collectible items inspired by video games);
- Facebook Marketplace, which has the advantage of being integrated within the social network, allows you to get in touch with your closest friends and their friends and also to filter searches and advertisements by location, distance and so on;
- Vinted, the Lithuanian app which at the beginning of 2021 was the most downloaded in our country and which is dedicated specifically to the sale and purchase of second-hand clothes, vintage clothes (hence its name);
- Wallapop, the Spanish app that in recent weeks has overwhelmed us with banners and ads on social networks (especially on TikTok), very easy to use and reminiscent of the American Craigslist, where you sell and buy a bit of everything;
- The Italian Immediately, about which we recently wrote on Italian Tech, which has further enhanced the services that allow you to buy and sell without meeting in person, because you never know with the coronavirus and the Omicron variant.
.