AT the height of the pandemic, more consumers started focusing on the environmental impact of their purchasing decisions and began prioritizing sustainability.

While the retail industry has weathered significant change during the pandemic, a deeper look at the 2022 research report from the collaboration between the Carousell Media Group (CMG), the leading classifieds group in Greater Southeast Asia, and the Interactive Advertising Bureau Southeast Asia and India (IAB SEA+India) on digital disruption trends proves that recommerce is one trend that keeps rising and is, indeed, here to stay.

The report, which was presented during the webinar by CMG and IAB SEA+India, provides an overview of the attitude in shopping and sustainability of consumers.In the Philippines alone, 75 percent of Filipino consumers prefer sustainable and eco-friendly brands, while 92 percent of Filipino shoppers – millennial and Gen Z groups being the majority – prefer products made from natural ingredients, while 90 percent prefer to purchase locally-made products as they believe they are healthier, better for their well-being, and buying local supports the local economy and provides employment to their fellow Filipinos.

According to CMG head of client strategy Saniya Gupta, these new breeds of shoppers are the drivers of the shift to recommerce who take pride in having pre-loved items while doing it in a more sustainable way, or resell items they no longer use. As more consumers become socially and environmentally conscious and are willing to pay more for sustainable products, she concludes, “My prediction for the future is that secondhand will be the first choice in the near future, and that recommerce will be as ubiquitous as e-commerce. But in order to achieve this, companies like Carousell need to continue providing a full funnel seamless process in shopping with services like authentication, shipping and returns policy.”