Research Update: Refurbed FY2024
Von Trapped in marketplace economics...
Key finding: Refurbed Marketplace reported €72.3m revenue in FY2024 (+19.3% YoY) on estimated GMV of €688m, but operating losses widened slightly to €19.4m as marketing spend increased €13.4m to generate just €11.7m incremental revenue, a subsequent 20% workforce reduction enabled the profitability announced in June 2025.
Hot on the heels of Foxway’s Q2 results, is the latest filing from Refurbed, another major organisation in the European Consumer Electronics circular economy, although occupying a different place in the value chain. I first reported on Refurbed back in February this year alongside some of the other key European marketplace organisations including Asgoodasnew, Rebuy and Swappie1. Back then, the overall picture of strong revenue growth and hard-to-find profitability was driven by intense price-based competition, scale economics and increasing secondary market participation from OEM’s and Retailers. Not a whole lot has changed, other than competition has become more intense and in some cases, profitability has got worse. So, let’s dive in and see how Refurbed are adapting…
Recap
Refurbed are based in Austria and are one of the best known marketplaces in Europe. In addition to their home market, they serve Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Switzerland. They provide a true marketplace for sellers and buyers, along the lines of Back Market. Unlike Back Market, for better or for worse, they file public accounts.
I assume that smartphones make up the bulk of their sales but, Refurbed also offer Laptops, desktops, tablets, headphones, smartwatches, consoles and cameras. They go beyond Consumer Electronics and offer product lines across the Home & Kitchen category as well as Sports Equipment and Baby & Child. Products are backed by the knowledge that you’re saving the planet and a minimum one-year warranty (provided by the seller) which you can extend with Refurbed, for a fee.
I’m not aware of any external investment since their Series C round in 2023 which came in at $58m (~€49m) for total equity funding of $131m (~€110m) over 5 rounds. Investors include Speedinvest, Evli Growth Partners and C4 Ventures. Management restructured the entities in 2023 resulting in the holding company Refurbed GmbH; the main operating company, Refurbed Marketplace GmbH; Refurbed Direct GmbH for direct sales or acquisitions of devices and; Refurbed Plus GmbH for additional services including the extended warranties. Only Refurbed Marketplace file full accounts so the first couple of sections focus specifically on that entity.
Performance
FY2024 Key Metrics (Refurbed Marketplace GmbH):
- Revenue: €72.3m (FY2023: €61.0m, +19.3%)
- Estimated GMV: €688m (FY2023: €577m)
- Operating Loss: €19.4m (FY2023: €18.6m)
- Net Loss: €19.8m (FY2023: €19.3m)
- Marketing & Operational Expenses: €49.3m (FY2023: €35.9m)
- Total People Costs: €28.2m (47.5% contracted personnel)
- Cash Position: €6.65m (FY2023: €4.54m)
- Accumulated Losses: €39.09m
- Estimated Device Volume: 905k–1.27m units
Source: Refurbed Marketplace GmbH filed accounts for year ending 31 December 2024
Management will be pleased with the sustained top-line momentum as revenue grew 19.3% YoY from €61m in FY2023 to €72.3m in FY2024. There’s a bit of licence here but, by using a (non-weighted) average commission from the January 2025 sellers guide of 10.5%, suggests that Refurbed’s FY2024 GMV was approximately €688m, slightly above the ECDB estimate of €660m2. Alongside the previous year’s estimated GMV of €577m (FY2023) and €333m (FY2022), the announcement back in April that they’d surpassed €2bn cumulative GMV since inception was reassuring. But, across the sector, revenue growth does not appear to be the issue.
Unfortunately, like many other retailers and marketplaces, there’s no revenue analysis either by country or by product category. I understand why, but it does mean any further commentary is complete supposition. Still, if I was to suppose that between 50% and 70% of sales were smartphones, that puts 2024 volume between 905k and 1.27m devices flowing through the marketplace, placing Refurbed somewhere near the top of the European marketplace pyramid, although still some distance behind Back Market.
Continue reading for:
Complete Profitability Analysis including marketing efficiency breakdown
Balance Sheet & Cashflow Assessment across all Refurbed entities
Strategic Summary including funding runway and sector consolidation outlook
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