eBay, the global ecommerce leader that connects millions of buyers and sellers, and Optoro, the leader in returns technology, today announced an exclusive recommerce solution. Together, they enable retailers to sell returned and excess inventory seamlessly on eBay, and in turn provide an influx of high-demand wholesale inventory for eBay sellers. The two companies leveraged their respective proprietary technologies to make sourcing and reselling on eBay faster and more seamless for sellers, thus accelerating the pace of resale.
This offering not only supports gig economy sellers during a year of record unemployment, but also unlocks a new resale channel for Optoro’s retail and brand customers, enabling them to immediately sell excess and returned inventory on eBay through BULQ®, Optoro’s proprietary B2B channel. Retailers predict that the growth of ecommerce will lead to record return rates, as online purchases can have three to five times the return rates of brick-and-mortar. This solution provides a new, automated channel for retailers to resell these goods, both reducing waste and boosting their bottom lines.
Through BULQ on eBay, sellers can seamlessly purchase and resell liquidation lots on the eBay marketplace that include returned and excess merchandise from some of the largest and best-known brands in the industry. Once the lot is purchased, this first-of-its-kind solution allows sellers to efficiently pull product information from the lots and create individual listings to edit, review and publish directly to their eBay store. The collaboration helps make the resale of sought-after merchandise from leading retail brands more convenient and accessible for sellers looking to reach eBay’s millions of buyers.
“We created BULQ to solve an inventory problem for retailers and the environment by connecting their returned and excess goods to the many micro entrepreneurs looking to make a better living as resellers,” said Tobin Moore, CEO of Optoro. “As a result of store closures during the pandemic and record ecommerce growth, many retailers are now overloaded with such inventory and need even better outlets. We are excited to partner with eBay to create this more powerful joint BULQ offering that will both provide improved liquidity to the retail industry while also supplying quality inventory to the many individuals looking for ways to make ends meet in the gig economy during these difficult times.”
Many small businesses and sellers rely on eBay to support their operations. According to eBay’s Global Marketplace Index, 77 percent of eBay sellers in the U.S. agree that income from the marketplace has given them financial security; 48 percent said it helped them get out of debt, and 30 percent said marketplace income helped pay their mortgage.
“eBay was founded 25 years ago on the promise of empowering people and fostering economic opportunity,” said Marni Levine, Vice President of Seller Operations and Engagement at eBay. “Now more than ever, simple and effective ecommerce solutions are essential for businesses of all sizes to grow and thrive. Everything we do at eBay is with our customers in mind — and this BULQ partnership will help transform our sellers’ experience with resale by making the listing process easier and more streamlined. We’re excited by this opportunity with BULQ and look forward to providing this resale experience so our seller community can continue to flourish in today’s global marketplace.”
For more information about the partnership, please visit http://ebay.com/sourceinventory
About Optoro
Optoro is the leading provider of returns technology for retailers and brands, using data and real-time decision making to make returns better for customers, retailers, and the planet. From an easy online customer returns portal, to warehouse processing and resale, Optoro offers one unified platform to improve outcomes across all points in the returns process. Retailers and brands — including Best Buy, IKEA, Target, and Staples — trust Optoro’s solution to make returns a strategic advantage for their business and enable sustainability initiatives across their supply chain. Learn more about Optoro's solutions at www.optoro.com.
About eBay
eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY) is a global commerce leader that connects millions of buyers and sellers in 190 markets around the world. We exist to enable economic opportunity for individuals, entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations of all sizes. The ebay.com marketplace and its localized counterparts, as well as the eBay mobile apps, are among the world’s largest and most vibrant marketplaces for discovering great value and unique selection. For more information, visit ebayinc.com.
For press inquiries, please reach out to:
Jackson Budinger, optoro@launchsquad.com
Ashley Settle, assettle@ebay.com