Indian online car classifieds platform CarTrade Tech acquired the operations of OLX India last year. With the addition of OLX, CarTrade Tech's user base has grown exponentially to over 70 million active users, said Amit Kumar, Managing Director and CEO, OLX India.
In an email interview with LiveMint, Kumar said that of the 70 million active users of CarTrade Tech OLX as a platform contributes more than 35 million unique users. Kumar also talks about the growing market for second-hand goods in India, the expansion plans and the future of the sector. Edited excerpts from the interview:
CarTrade Tech recently acquired OLX. How will this impact the company's growth trajectory? What is the bigger purpose of the company?
Following the acquisition of OLX India's operations by CarTrade Tech, we have significantly strengthened the group's presence in the online advertising market. With the addition of OLX, CarTrade Tech's user base has grown exponentially to over 70 million active users. OLX as a platform contributes over 35 million unique users.
Also read: The booming global used car market
OLX unlocks significant consumer value in categories such as used cars, used bikes, real estate, used smartphones, jobs and used consumer sustainability through enhanced product-driven solutions based on deep consumer insights. OLX contributes over 30 percent to the group's total revenue and is on a steady growth trajectory.
What other expansions and initiatives do you have planned for the future?
OLX is forging multiple partnerships to meet consumer needs across our focus categories, and our recent partnerships with leading players like Cars24 (Used Cars) and Royal Enfield (Used Bikes) have been a step in that direction.
How do you assess the Indian second-hand goods market? What is the future of this market? How does OLX India fit into this?
The global second-hand sector was valued at $160 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach $850 billion by 2034, with an annual growth rate of 16 percent. The growth of online advertising like OLX is heavily influenced by factors such as the shift from lower-income to middle-income consumers to drive demand, and the penetration of smartphones and the internet to drive testing and adoption.
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More than 50 percent of Indians are now active internet users, and this number is expected to reach 900 million by 2025. Also, with increasing consumer awareness around the circular economy in India, which is likely to reach $2 trillion by 2050 (Source: CII ), the Indian second-hand goods market is bound to grow at an accelerated pace.
What products are in demand on the used goods market?
OLX is expanding its focus to a wider range of categories including real estate, jobs, cars and bikes, consumer durables and smartphones. To give an interesting insight on how our platform reflects consumer trends, with the onset of summer, we witnessed a huge spike in the consumer durables category with high demand for ACs. In March 2024, demand grew by 250 percent across all markets compared to the previous three months.
Where do you see the market five years later?
Online marketplace models will continue to evolve to meet consumer needs. Fueled by rising consumer demand and a rapidly growing market, the used goods sector is poised for significant growth, especially in categories such as real estate, jobs, consumer durables, smartphones and cars and bicycles. Online marketplaces improve user experiences by integrating advanced payment and logistics solutions.
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We will also see an increase in easy financing of high-quality used goods. According to the 7th edition of the OLX Mobility Report, the used car financing market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 25 percent from ₹485 billion in FY23 to ₹1,600 billion in FY28.
What measures does OLX take to ensure the online safety of their consumers?
As a consumer-focused brand, we consider trust and safety as a top priority across all functions. For the safety of our consumers, we take several measures, such as informing them through safety videos at every stage. OLX works with law enforcement agencies and uses data-driven insights to proactively ensure platform security.
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Published: May 8, 2024 4:27 PM IST