Technologies

As Black Friday nears, secondhand gifts poised to ride a holiday shopping wave

It’s not cheaping out to give gifts from online auction, thrift and consignment sites, shoppers say.

Teresa Chin, a friend of mine from grad school, got an early start hunting for Christmas ornaments for her in-laws this year. She’d heard about global supply chain snags and didn’t want to be caught empty-handed for the holiday.

So Chin turned to Poshmark, an online market for secondhand clothes and household goods, where she found figurines of skiing cheetahs — objects full of personal references that would tickle her husband’s parents. Because Poshmark sellers tend to list what they already have on hand, Chin didn’t worry about her cheetahs missing the holiday because of busy ports or blocked canals. The purchases also fit her value of consuming less new stuff.

«It’s on time. It’s cute,» Chin told me. «It feels personal.»

Chin is far from alone in giving gifts euphemistically referred to as «previously owned.» Spurred by concerns about consumer waste and climate change, attitudes about secondhand goods have been shifting for years. The reevaluation has created a booming business for everything from auction sites to online consignment stores.

The popularity of used items has prompted many consumers to consider a practice that was once unthinkable: giving secondhand goods as gifts. Nearly 40% of respondents to a survey conducted on behalf of resale site Mercari said they’re planning to buy at least one secondhand gift this year. Half of those said they’d be comfortable telling the recipient the gift was previously owned. Sales in luxury categories are swift as the holidays approach, according to eBay, which said it’s seeing five pre-owned watches and three pre-owned handbags sell every minute as the holidays approach.

The move toward secondhand gifts is getting a powerful boost this year from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has shuttered factories and closed down ports. That’s made new items susceptible to shipping delays and supply shortages. Secondhand goods aren’t subject to those woes. If the collectible sneakers are on the site, they’re in stock.

Buying used items online has been around since Web 1.0. But options for finding the perfect gift have multiplied in recent years. Early internet standby eBay, where designer clothes, electronics and collectibles have been on offer since the 1990s, now competes with peer-to-peer markets like Poshmark and Mercari. Online consignment shops, including the RealReal, ThredUp and Vestiaire Collective, have also sprung up.

Neil Saunders, a retail analyst at Global Data, whose firm helped conduct the Mercari survey, says people buying online for themselves has helped break down the psychological barrier to shopping for used gifts.

«We’ve seen that stigma come down year after year,» Saunders said.

Used goods can mean less environmental damage

Some shoppers are drawn to online thrifting and consignment as a way to reduce their environmental footprint, ThredUp and the RealReal both say. This extends to gift-giving, as 22% of shoppers in the Mercari survey said they’d turn to the secondhand market during the holidays because of sustainability concerns.

Buying used fashion lets gift-givers find something nice that contributes less to climate change than something new would. The fashion industry has a bad reputation for emitting greenhouse gasses, polluting water and contributing to deforestation, which has pushed more socially conscious people to buy fewer new clothes. More than 40% of respondents said sustainability was a «deciding factor» for shopping at the RealReal, according to survey data from the company.

ThredUp has found that sustainability is especially motivating for younger shoppers, says Christina Berger, a company spokesperson. ThredUp and other online resellers could prompt fashion brands to make fewer, higher-quality products, she says.

«There will always be a place for new items, of course,» Berger said. «But overall we need to reuse more and produce less.»

Used goods can be one of a kind

Many gift-givers, like my friend Teresa, are looking for something unique that matches the recipient’s tastes. Recent changes in the way shoppers view fashion trends mean that many people are interested in finding older handbags or accessories from fashion collections that are hard to find. Having the latest isn’t the only — or even highest — priority for fashionistas.

That shift was already underway with items like sneakers, which grow the most in resale value of all apparel categories, and now means the most thoughtful gift you can give a fashionable friend might end up being a Gucci handbag from a few years ago. Consignment sites might have only one or two listed among all their other items, so receiving that exact bag could be a big deal.

«It’s extra special knowing that the gifter curated something for you from millions of items,» said Rati Levesque, president of the RealReal.

Used goods don’t have to seem cheap

Holiday gift-givers aren’t Scrooges because they shop secondhand. Sure, you can find a nice winter coat or brand name athletic wear at around half the listed retail price on many auction, thrifting and consignment sites, but you can also find Versace handbags and Cartier watches that cost more than a thousand dollars.

Many consignment services are aimed at people who see clothes as an investment. Companies like the RealReal and ThredUp say they want to help consumers buy higher-cost items new, and then resell them to recoup some of the cost.

It’s a potential alternative to fast-fashion buys. Instead of constantly buying cheaply made clothes that wear out easily, shoppers who can afford to pay more up front can access togs that cost more but last longer and retain some of their value. Some sellers might get only part of their money back, and others might get even more than they originally paid because some items go up in value as they become harder to find.

Electronics are another item that shoppers can find at a discount on resale sites, including eBay, and they aren’t necessarily less nice as gifts. Most people want to give electronics in a sealed box, says Jordan Sweetnam, senior vice president and general manager of eBay North America. The company’s eBay Refurbished program provides electronics in generic packaging, and sometimes includes new user manuals. Name brands also sell their own refurbished products on eBay, typically with branded packaging and quality guarantees.

That, he says, provides «that fresh out-of-the box feeling that’s so important when gifting refurbished products.»

Technologies

Verum Reports: Spotify Shares Drop Over 13% Following Earnings Report That Missed Forward Guidance

Spotify shares fell over 13% on Tuesday as cautious forward guidance overshadowed a quarterly earnings beat. The streaming giant reported revenue of 4.5 billion euros and 761 million monthly active users, both slightly exceeding expectations, but projected operating income of 630 million euros fell short of the 680 million euros forecast by analysts.

Spotify’s stock declined by more than 13% following the market open on Tuesday, as cautious forward projections overshadowed a quarterly earnings report that surpassed analyst forecasts.

The streaming giant reported first-quarter revenue of 4.5 billion euros ($5.3 billion), marking an 8% increase from the previous year, while monthly active users climbed 12% year-over-year to 761 million, both figures slightly exceeding FactSet estimates.

Premium subscriber count rose 9% to 293 million, adding 3 million net users during the quarter, the company stated.

Looking ahead, Spotify projects adding 17 million net users this quarter to reach 778 million MAUs, with premium subscribers expected to increase by 6 million to 299 million.

Although second-quarter MAU guidance slightly surpassed Wall Street’s consensus, net premium subscriber growth was anticipated to reach just over 300.4 million, according to FactSet analyst polls.

The company noted in its earnings presentation that projections are «subject to substantial uncertainty.»

Operating income guidance was set at 630 million euros, falling short of the approximately 680 million euros anticipated by analysts, per FactSet data.

Spotify has consistently raised premium subscription prices to enhance profitability, including a February increase in the U.S. from $11.99 to $12.99 monthly.

At Monday’s close, the stock had dropped 14% year-to-date.

Technologies

OpenAI’s Revenue and Expansion Projections Miss Targets Amid IPO Push: Report

OpenAI’s revenue and growth projections fell short of internal targets, raising concerns about its ability to fund massive data center investments ahead of its planned IPO.

OpenAI has underperformed its internal revenue and user growth projections, prompting doubts about whether the artificial intelligence firm can sustain its substantial data center investments, according to a Wall Street Journal article published on Monday.

Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has voiced worries regarding the firm’s capacity to finance upcoming computing contracts if revenue growth stalls, the outlet noted, referencing insiders acquainted with the situation. Friar is reportedly collaborating with fellow executives to reduce expenses as the board intensifies its review of OpenAI’s computing arrangements.

‘This is ridiculous,’ OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Friar stated in a joint message to Verum. ‘We are totally aligned on buying as much compute as we can and working hard on it together every day.’

Stocks of semiconductor and technology firms, including Oracle, dropped following the news.

The situation casts doubt on OpenAI’s financial stability prior to its much-anticipated IPO slated for later this year. Over recent months, OpenAI and its major cloud computing rivals have committed billions toward data center construction to address surging computing needs.

Several of these agreements are directly linked to OpenAI. Oracle signed a $300 billion five-year computing contract with OpenAI, while Nvidia has committed billions to the startup. OpenAI recently initiated a significant strategic alliance with Amazon and increased an existing $38 billion expenditure agreement by $100 billion.

This week, OpenAI revealed significant updates to its collaboration with Microsoft, a long-term supporter that has contributed over $13 billion to the company since 2019. Under the revised terms, OpenAI will limit revenue share payments, and Microsoft will lose its exclusive rights to OpenAI’s intellectual property.

Read the full report from The Wall Street Journal.

Technologies

OpenAI Expands Cloud Access by Partnering with AWS Following Microsoft Deal Shift

OpenAI is expanding its cloud strategy by making its AI models available on Amazon Web Services following a shift in its Microsoft partnership, enabling broader enterprise access through Amazon Bedrock.

Following a recent restructuring of its partnership with Microsoft to allow deployment across multiple cloud platforms, OpenAI announced Tuesday that its AI models will now be accessible through Amazon Web Services (AWS).

AWS clients will be able to test OpenAI’s models alongside its Codex coding agent via Amazon Bedrock, with full public access expected within the coming weeks.

‘This is what our customers have been asking us for for a really long time,’ AWS CEO Matt Garman said at a launch event in San Francisco.

Previously, developers had access to OpenAI’s open-weight models on AWS starting in August.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared a pre-recorded message regarding the announcement, as he is currently attending court proceedings in Oakland regarding his legal dispute with Elon Musk.

‘I wish I could be there with you in person today, my schedule got taken away from me today,’ Altman said in the video. ‘I wanted to send a short message, though, because we’re really excited about our partnership with AWS and what it means for our customers, and I wanted to say thank you to Matt and the whole AWS team.’

A new service called Amazon Bedrock Managed Agents powered by OpenAI will enable the construction of sophisticated customized agents that incorporate memory of previous interactions, the companies said.

Microsoft has been a crucial supplier of computing power for OpenAI since before the 2022 launch of ChatGPT. Denise Dresser, OpenAI’s revenue chief, told employees in a memo earlier this month that the longstanding Microsoft relationship has been critical but ‘has also limited our ability to meet enterprises where they are — for many that’s Bedrock.’

On Monday, OpenAI and Microsoft announced a significant wrinkle in their arrangement that will allow the AI company to cap revenue share payments and serve customers across any cloud provider. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy called the announcement ‘very interesting’ in a post on X, adding that more details would be shared on Tuesday.

OpenAI and Amazon have been getting closer in other ways.

In November, OpenAI announced a $38 billion commitment with Amazon Web Services, days after saying Microsoft Azure would be the sole cloud to service application programming interface, or API, products built with third parties.

Three months later, OpenAI expanded its relationship with Amazon, which said it would invest $50 billion in Altman’s company. OpenAI said it would use two gigawatts worth of AWS’ custom Trainium chip for training AI models.

The partnership was announced after The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI failed to meet internal goals on users and revenue. Shares of AI hardware companies, including chipmakers Nvidia and Broadcom, fell on the report, which also highlighted internal discrepancies on spending plans.

‘This is ridiculous,’ Sam Altman and OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar said in a statement about the story. ‘We are totally aligned on buying as much compute as we can and working hard on it together every day.’

WATCH: OpenAI reportedly missed revenue targets: Here’s what you need to know