eBay bolsters logistics options for sellers as platform surges with SMEs
eBay UK has bolstered protections and logistics for its sellers after seeing a 237 per cent surge in new businesses joining the online marketplace giant amid the pandemic.
The pandemic pushed many employees into furlough, unemployment and a general revaluation of working life and with many looking for extra income, side-hustles on online platforms took off.
The new end-to-end fulfilment service offers sellers faster delivery options, improved logistics management, more streamlined processes and better seller protection.
“We know that managing space and storage for inventory can be one of the biggest pain points for our sellers, while an increasingly competitive retail environment means that consumers expect faster and more transparent delivery times,” eBay UK general manager Murray Lambell explained.
There had been an increasing number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) looking to grow their business through the online platform – particularly as the digital sphere racked up an online shopping bill of £110bn over lockdown, according to Ofcom.
The new options for sellers are set to “help sellers adapt in a changing retail landscape, reducing burdensome costs and giving them more opportunity to focus on their business and what they do best,” Lambell added.
Sellers will also be able to use eBay’s fulfilment by logistics firm Orange Connex for orders that are sold on the marketplace or their shops on other online platforms.
The fresh logistics options have not yet been rolled out internationally, beyond Germany, China and now the UK, but eBay said it plans to in the near future.
Independent jewellery seller Lindsay Hayman said that “With everything going on with the ‘pingdemic’, using eBay’s fulfilment operation gives me the peace of mind that I can continue to bring in revenue for my family, even if we were forced to isolate.”