When you think about eBay, you probably don’t think about buying luxury goods from brands like Christian Louboutin, Fendi, Alexander McQueen, Celine or Valentino. However, that opinion may be about to change.

eBay is betting big on the luxury resale market with a £7.5 million ($9 million) investment in the UK-based resale platform Cudoni.

eBay’s venture arm participated in the funding round, which also saw investments from The Daily Mail Group Ventures and global retail advisor and former Woolworths man Andrew Jennings. This latest round of funding brings total investment in the resale platform to £14.3 million ($17.6 million) since being founded in 2017.

What Does Cudoni Do?

The Cudoni platform connects millions of buyers and sellers worldwide and offers products from more than 4,000 brands, including luxury handbags, watches, jewellery, and streetwear, for sale on its site.

Speaking to journalists, Cudoni’s founder and chief executive, James Harford-Tyrer, said, “It is an outstanding vote of confidence in the brand and our ambitions, to receive investment from recommerce pioneer, eBay, during what has been an incredibly tough year for the consumer sector.”

What Does This Mean for eBay Sellers?

At first glance, very little.

However, dig a little deeper, and it highlights eBay’s commitment to several important markets and eCommerce trends for eBay sellers. These include:

• The Resale Market: Essentially, eBay is returning to its roots and supporting the type of sellers that made it great in the first place. By focusing on the resale or pre-loved market, eBay continues to differentiate itself from Amazon (which is itself trying to crack the luxury goods market) and become the online marketplace for products that may not be available anywhere else. This move also enables eBay to compete with disruptive channels in the resale market, including Depop and Vinted.
• The Circular Economy: Consumers are increasingly focused on making sustainable decisions when buying goods or services. The circular economy is increasingly important to younger (Gen Z) shoppers, who are quickly becoming a dominant force in the marketplace.
• The Luxury Goods Market: By showcasing luxury goods on the marketplace, eBay can attract buyers to the platform who may not have previously considered visiting the site. Regardless of what you sell, this is good news. For example, today’s pre-loved luxury handbag purchase might lead to tomorrow’s refurbished laptop or smartphone sale.

While there is no suggestion of any cross-pollination of business between eBay’s and Cudoni’s marketplace, it will provide eBay with greater insight and influence in the luxury goods market.

Learn More

Book a discovery call with one of our retail experts today to learn how Frooition can help sellers of luxury goods raise their profile on online marketplaces like eBay and Amazon.