Ikea takes on Craigslist with classifieds site for its used furniture @ Ars Technica –
Ikea is taking on the likes of eBay, Craigslist, and Gumtree with a peer-to-peer marketplace for customers to sell secondhand furniture to each other… Customers enter their product, their own pictures, and a selling price, while Ikea’s own artificial intelligence-enabled database brings in its own promotional images and measurements. The buyer collects the furniture directly from the seller, who has the option of receiving money or a voucher from Ikea with a 15 percent bonus.
Early offerings on Ikea Preowned include large items such as sofas for up to $670 (600 euros) and wardrobes for $500 (450 euros) as well as smaller items such as a toilet roll holder for $4.50 (4 euros). Listings are free, but Brodin said Ikea could eventually charge “a symbolic fee, a humble fee.” He added: “We’re going to verify the full scope including the economics. If a lot of people use the offer to get a discount with Ikea — it’s a good way to reconnect with customers. I am very curious. I think it makes business sense.” Ikea has previously tested selling its new furniture on third-party platforms such as Alibaba’s Tmall in China, but the Preowned platform marks its first foray into secondhand marketplaces. It also dovetails with the retailer’s wish to become “circular and climate positive” by 2030.
Interesting! I did not know tested selling its new furniture on third-party platforms such as Alibaba. It seems like there will be a marketplace for “Ikea hacks” and after-market modifications of Ikea good with electronics, perhaps even an Etsy-style section.
We have a lot of great learn guides on modifying Ikea goods in the Adafruit Learn System.
Guides:
- Hacking Ikea Lamps with Circuit Playground Express.
- Ikea Vindriktning Hack with QT Py ESP32-S3 and Adafruit IO.
- No-Code IKEA Vindriktning Air Quality Sensor Hack with Adafruit IO.
And here are some of the well-known resources for “IKEA hacks”…
IKEA hacks