The sale of refurbished products has increased enormously in France. But two out of three refurbished smartphones sold in France are imported from abroad.
With nearly 3 million refurbished smartphones sold in France in 2021, an increase of 20% in one year, France has become a privileged area for operators in the sector and a market estimated at 700 million euros (for 14% of annual smartphone sales). in quantity). At a time of runaway inflation and a shortage of electronic components, remanufactured goods continue to thrive: “This is a small business compared to the core business of the Fnac Darty group, but showing double-digit growth. “Welcomes Martin Aunos, the director of Fnac Darty’s second life. Good news for the planet? Yes … but it could be better.
Smartphones from abroad
“In France, 1 million phones are collected every year and nearly 3 million are sold, so some of the refurbished phones sold in France come from overseas,” said Augustin Becquet, CEO of Recommerce, a subcontractor specializing in recovery solutions. of the players. such as Bouygues, Amazon and Samsung. Import is therefore crucial for the French refurbished product market. “Some refurbished players have a business model of purchasing lots and products in surplus and subsidized markets like Japan, the United States or Australia, where consumers have $ 100 packages and then get a new cell phone. every 24 months. Then they resell them on the French and European markets ”, explains Augustin Becquet. The recommerce, for its part, favors the local procurement of products. Frédérick Baby-Marinpouy, head of Expodispo.fr, a platform for the resale of exhibition models, explains that “the flow of refurbished goods has dried up due to the pandemic and the shortage of raw materials”.
To improve the refurbished product market, the company wants more spare parts to be available so that products become easier and cheaper to repair. “Out of 7,000 references, we take back 600,000 products per year,” explains Augustin Becquet. There are some products that we cannot repair because spare parts are not available. There is little recovery in recycling because the components mix and the extraction of the materials becomes complex. By having generic spare parts on these products, we could lower prices “, he continues. If, from an ecological point of view, importing products from the American or Asian continent to resell them in Europe is questionable, the approach remains partly virtuous for the CEO of Recommerce, because “no new material is extracted.” Augustin Becquet has become a stakeholder of Eurefas, an association that defends the interests of players renewed at European level. The members of the association sign a charter in which they undertake to promote a circular economy .
A possible local solution
“At Fnac Darty, we focus more on products from our ecosystem, refurbished by one of our four workshops in France or with our partners on the local circuit, compared to a refurbished market that is widely purchased in the US.” also Martin on Auno’s. Refurbished into Fnac Darty, it employs about forty employees, supported by the group’s after-sales service, which represents several thousand people. “For example, we take PS4s back via YesYes in Caen and then resell them. Our goal is to close the circle. “According to the Recommerce Kantar barometer, only 27% of French people have already sold their mobile phones second-hand. The others keep them in reserve in case they are needed or prevent their data from being violated or give them to a loved one. “There is a wastewater tank in France, notes Augustin Becquet, CEO of Recommerce. Smartphones are mainly reused in a family or friendly environment and most end up in drawers. it will therefore only use for 2 or 3 days. it will no longer be updated the day it is needed, so we should encourage them to resell them, “he continues. And once this bet is won, the ecological mission of the revised will be perfectly realized.