COVID-19 Closed Self-Employed Businesses Flock to Secondhand Trading Platforms

Number of Closed Business Product Listings on HelloMarket Up 115% Year-on-Year Through Q3 Last Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] The number of listings for closed business products on secondhand trading platforms significantly increased last year. This is interpreted as a result of self-employed individuals who closed their businesses due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic directly engaging in trading closed business products on secondhand trading platforms. Hello Market, a non-face-to-face secondhand trading platform (CEO Lee Hu-guk), announced on the 12th that the number of secondhand products registered with the keywords 'closed business' and 'store clearance' increased by 115% compared to the same period last year until the third quarter of last year.

Looking at it by quarter, the number of products registered with the keywords 'closed business' and 'store clearance' in the first quarter of last year, when the first wave of COVID-19 spread, increased by 204% compared to the same period last year. In the second quarter, when the weather warmed and the spread subsided, it increased by 72% compared to the same period last year, and in the third quarter, it increased by 63% compared to the same period last year. Considering that stricter social distancing measures were implemented for a long period due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in the fourth quarter, it is expected that the number of closed business product listings in the fourth quarter also increased significantly.

Until the third quarter of last year, the most registered products on Hello Market with the keywords 'closed business' and 'store clearance' were women's clothing, which increased by 95% compared to the previous year. During the same period, computers and laptops increased by 640%, and sports and leisure goods increased by 1686%, following behind. In the case of women's clothing, offline store secondhand disposals increased. Computers and laptops were frequently traded products used in closed businesses, including PC rooms. Due to restrictions on group exercises caused by COVID-19, the number of secondhand listings for sports and leisure goods also exploded.

Among the closed business products registered on Hello Market until the third quarter of last year, the proportion of products sold was 18%. In 2019, it was 34%. Hello Market explained that this is interpreted as a result of a significant increase in closed business products due to COVID-19, while new startup demand sharply declined. Lee Hu-guk, CEO of Hello Market, said, "The fact that self-employed individuals were hit hard by COVID-19 last year can be confirmed by the surge in the number of closed business product listings," adding, "The excessive number of closures has exceeded the capacity of existing disposal companies, which seems to be why self-employed individuals are flocking to secondhand trading platforms."