Singapore – Multi-category classifieds and recommerce marketplace Carousell Group has launched its ‘Circular Economy Impact Report’ that showed how secondhand transactions have made a positive climate impact in greater Southeast Asia.
The data from the report revealed that the user community of the platform has avoided a total of 116,577 metric tonnes of carbon emissions in four goods categories in 2022, including fashion and luxury, electronics, furniture and home living, and hobbies and toys. The staggering number is equivalent to 5.3 million trees absorbing CO2 per year.
Furthermore, it also showed that more than half, or 56%, of purchases made in the Carousell marketplace displaced the purchase of a new item. On average, 55% of surveyed users across Carousell’s six key markets have reported an increase in buying and selling of second-hand items in 2022 as compared to 2021.
Carousell has also partnered with European climate tech company Vaayu in quantifying their impact, leveraging its proprietary AI and machine learning (ML) technology, and utilising its Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) database of over 600,00 product data points to come up with the report.
Quantifying the avoided carbon emissions, the report reinforces the fact that the act of buying and selling pre-owned or used items is a better choice for the planet as compared to traditional retail, which involves purchasing new items. It also underscores the significance of every individual transaction in contributing to the overall impact of the circular economy.
Gaurav Bhasin, chief strategy officer at Carousell Group, said, “By facilitating secondhand transactions, Carousell Group holds a central role in advancing the circular economy alongside our users in the Greater Southeast Asia region. As a key enabler of the circular economy in our region, we have a responsibility to lead by example and measure the potential positive impact of choosing secondhand products over new ones in a trustworthy and transparent way.”
He added, “In addition to the avoided emissions calculations, we have also taken the opportunity to calculate our group’s carbon footprint. The robustness of our chosen methodology underscores our strong commitment to sustainability, and it forms the bedrock of our sustainability endeavours.”
Also commenting on the result, Quek Siu Rui, co-founder and chief executive officer at Carousell Group, said, “Our mission is to make secondhand the first choice for everyone. We have stayed true to this mission over the past 11 years, and we remain committed to making selling and buying secondhand even simpler, more trusted, and convenient. With the release of the report, we hope more people realise how easy it is to embrace secondhand as a lifestyle and contribute to a greener world without compromising on the things they enjoy.”
Meanwhile, Namrata Sandhu, co-founder and CEO at Vaayu, shared, “Retail is responsible for 25% of global carbon emissions, and with research continuing to show we’re not on track to keep global warming below 1.5C, we’re at a critical inflection point. Circular business models, like recommerce, offer a clear path to reducing retail’s impact on our planet, which is why we are so proud to partner with Carousell Group to quantify its climate impact and empower communications with its users.”
