Interest in 'Used Furniture' Rises Amid High Inflation... A Win-Win for Environmental Protection

Livart, Industry's First Used Furniture Trading Platform Launched
Used Furniture Images Are Gradually Changing

Consumer interest in used furniture is increasing. This is due to the ongoing domestic and international economic downturn, which has led to a growing tendency toward rational consumption. There is also the advantage of protecting the environment through resource recycling.

According to Hyundai Livart on the 15th, the page views of ‘Ogu Gagu,’ a used furniture trading platform launched in March last year as the first of its kind in the domestic furniture industry, averaged 310,000 per month in January and February this year. This is nearly six times the approximately 54,000 views recorded in its launch month. The number of used furniture listings started at around 100 in March last year and increased to over 1,100 last month.

Latest Products Page on Ogugagu Website
Photo by Ogugagu Website Capture

Ogu Gagu mediates person-to-person transactions exclusively for used furniture, similar to Danggeun Market. It is possible to buy and sell not only Hyundai Livart products but also furniture from other companies. Browsing the site or application reveals many pieces from competitors such as Hanssem and Illoom. The product categories are subdivided into wardrobes, bed frames, storage cabinets, dining tables, sofas, chairs, and more. The biggest feature is that Hyundai Livart’s professional installation technicians handle everything from furniture disassembly to delivery and installation. This addresses the biggest challenge in trading furniture on existing used goods platforms: delivery and installation.

One reason used furniture trading is gaining popularity is that in an era of high inflation, consumers can purchase reasonably priced products of good quality. The promotional pages emphasize rationality with phrases like ‘Brand furniture, pick reasonably’ and ‘Collection of reasonably priced sofas.’ Sofas that cost millions of won when new are priced at tens of thousands of won in the used market. There are also many lightly used products listed due to reasons such as moving or overseas relocation.

The image of used furniture is gradually becoming more positive. An industry insider explained, “Because furniture involves frequent physical contact in daily life, there used to be a tendency to avoid using secondhand furniture. However, as consumers have become accustomed to trading used goods in other product categories such as electronics, perceptions of used furniture are also changing.” According to the Korea Internet & Security Agency, the domestic used goods market size, which was 4 trillion won in 2008, grew to 24 trillion won in 2021. It is expected to reach 43 trillion won next year.

There is also the meaning of practicing nature conservation through resource recycling. Hyundai Livart created the used furniture trading platform considering that more than 5,000 tons of reusable furniture are discarded annually and that environmental pollution is severe due to illegal incineration. If about 20 tons of furniture are reused monthly instead of being incinerated, it is expected to prevent 264 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually. A Hyundai Livart official explained, “The platform does not charge separate fees for sales or purchases; rather, the company bears the operating costs to establish a foundation for building a used furniture trading ecosystem,” adding, “Ogu Gagu is part of the company’s ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management.”