Beebs, the influence of Covid on second-hand for children

Beebs,a second-hand buying and selling platform for children, is the first community marketplace for parents. Launched in 2020 by Arsène Huot and Morgan Hilmi,it has been able to surf on the benefits of the health crisis. Indeed, it already brings together more than 250,000 parents and more than 250,000 objects already sold. Available on Android and iPhone,children’s items can be added, sold and bought with one click. This allows parents to supply themselves with essential items for babies and children while making economical and ecological purchases.

Indeed, just like Beebs,many applications have been able to surf on the few advantages that the health crisis has provided. Indeed, buying and selling second-hand is not a recent phenomenon but has experienced considerable growth since the beginning of the pandemic. Thus, consumption habits are changing and evolving in favor of a more sustainable and economical mode.

Beebs, the second hand surfing on the post-Covid

Beebs is a platform dedicated to second hand for parents. Indeed, created in 2020 in a context of health crisis and declining purchasing power of households, the platform has been able to reap benefits. It provides a viable solution for parents who need to provide for their children. For this, Beebs offers an easy-to-use application to buy and resell objects for babies and children. Toys, clothing, childcare equipment and many more are available at discounted prices. In addition, the platform also offers a space dedicated to the community with the aim of facilitating and promoting exchange between members. A network of mutual aid and support, Beebs is therefore not just a simple resale application. Thus, it brings together about 250,000 parents since its creation a year ago.

second-hand beebs children health crisis ecology
Beebs, the application in favor of the environment and savings for families.

Beebs has thus observed a real change in the consumption habits of parents in particular. Indeed, the growth observed in the lockdown did not decrease when health restrictions were lifted in May 2020. This has therefore led to a real awareness of the second hand. Sustainable consumption is therefore becoming a real underlying trend. Thus, the platform recorded a 10% increase in its business volume between May and July 2020, after the lockdown. The post-confinement period has therefore not changed the new consumption habits that the French had begun to take during the confinement. These habits taken in a concern for savings in view of short-time working, redundancies etc due to the Covid-19 crisis are ultimately much more sustainable.

The Nouvelle-Aquitaine region stands out on the Beebs platform. Indeed, sellers in Charentes have seen their additional income increased by 365% with an average of €139 earned post-confinement. This proves how winning the second hand is for both buyers and sellers.

Sustainable consumption, the new fashion beneficial to the environment and amplified by the crisis

Several factors are taken into account in changing consumption habits. Indeed, the desire to save money is one of the main reasons. Thus, children grow up at a crazy speed and buying new clothes that they will no longer be able to wear just a few months later is a real concern for parents. Buying babies’ and children’s clothes at half price is therefore an economical solution that does good to the wallet.

In addition, the desire to consume more sustainably is mainly intended with a view to acting for the environment. Indeed, buying clothes or second-hand objects significantly reduces the environmental impact of the production and transport of these new objects. Finally, it is also an ethical issue. The many controversies around the exploitation of the workforce, the working conditions of workers and also their age are pushing some to rethink their mode of consumption.

The pandemic has amplified the economic factor with a considerable decline in the purchasing power of households. The way they consume and shop has evolved during this period. The positive point is that these new consumption patterns are ultimately not ephemeral. They become real habits rooted in morals. Enough to give hope about the very harmful impact of the production chain. We can now hope for a decrease in mass consumption and production. This will contribute in particular to a reduction in greenhouse gases emitted by these activities in constant just-in-time flows.

Sources:

The second-hand sector for children benefits from the recovery: +10% of post-confinement activity on the Beebs platform,Beebs, press release of 20 July 2021

Our objects have many futures,Ministry of Ecological Transition, 25 November 2019

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