The smartphone business is in fixed movement, formed by the most recent know-how launches, shifting provide chains, and a mixture of international financial elements. These modifications don’t simply influence new machine gross sales, they’ve a direct impact on the thriving secondary market, the place demand for inexpensive and high-quality pre-owned units is rising quickly.
On this B-Inventory Q&A, we join with Joe Dube, Director of Cell Accounts, to get his perspective on the present panorama of the pre-owned cell market, what developments he anticipates within the 12 months forward, and a few private insights from his journey within the business.
When you needed to sum up in a single phrase, how would you describe the present state of the pre-owned cell market proper? Why?
Maturing.
The pre-owned cell market is coming into a brand new section of sophistication and scale. Stakeholders now acknowledge the immense alternative within the secondary market, and we’re seeing speedy developments in how units are sourced, assessed, and bought. Commerce-in packages are extra strong than ever, grading and triage processes have turn out to be more and more exact and environment friendly, because of improvements like AI-powered diagnostics and automatic inspection methods, and carriers and OEMs are leveraging knowledge and analytics to optimize pricing and channel technique, maximizing restoration and minimizing threat.
This maturation is clear throughout the provision chain: from improved refurbishment requirements and client belief in pre-owned units, to the rise of licensed packages and better give attention to sustainability. The market is not only growing-it’s evolving, with each hyperlink within the provide chain turning into extra analytical, technology-driven, and targeted on extracting the best doable worth.
Any knowledge factors or developments take you unexpectedly in Q1?
Probably the most important pattern in Q1 was a return to market normalcy. We noticed normal month-to-month depreciation charges within the 2–4% vary, with no main pricing swings or sudden shifts. In distinction to final 12 months, when the market noticed unusually robust pricing and fewer depreciation, significantly over the summer season months, in Q1 pricing adopted a extra typical sample of gradual depreciation, reflecting a extra secure surroundings.
What can be your primary piece of recommendation/or message for OEMs and carriers proper now?
My high piece of recommendation for OEMs and carriers is to take a really end-to-end strategy to the secondary market. It’s not nearly offloading pre-owned devices-it’s about understanding and optimizing each step of the method. Partnering with the correct specialists at every stage is important; the standard of your companions immediately impacts the worth you may get well, your model repute, and your capacity to scale sustainably. By investing in robust, data-driven partnerships, you’ll maximize the lifetime worth of your units and place your group for long-term success.
You had been not too long ago the recipient of a “Professionals to Know” award. Do you’ve gotten any ideas you’d prefer to share?
I used to be actually honored to be acknowledged as a 2025 Professional to Know. The award displays the revolutionary, data-driven strategy B-Inventory brings to the cell secondary market and the resale ecosystem. With the pre-owned cell market outpacing the expansion of the first market, and with developments in trade-in and resale applied sciences, we’re uniquely positioned to assist wi-fi carriers and OEMs maximize worth and lengthen machine lifecycles. We allow our companions to navigate a quickly maturing market and unlock new alternatives for tens of tens of millions of pre-owned units.
What would you say to your youthful self simply getting began on this business?
I’d inform myself that no person has all of it figured out-even the most important of corporations aren’t all the time totally optimized. There’s all the time room to enhance, be taught, and develop. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, and don’t simply accept figuring out how issues are done- dig slightly deeper to know the why. That curiosity will enable you to see alternatives others may miss and make an actual distinction as you develop in your profession.
Trying forward, should you needed to listing your high 5 ‘issues to look at for’ as an business in 2025, what would they be?
Trying forward, I believe there are a number of key developments set to form the pre-owned cell market. First, the influence of recent and proposed tariffs on imported electronics might considerably increase costs for lower-grade units and parts, significantly these coming from main commerce companions like China. This might speed up a shift towards extra home refurbishment and restore operations within the U.S., as corporations search for methods to manage prices and decrease provide chain disruptions. If tariffs do drive up costs for brand new and imported units, we will anticipate to see elevated demand for restore providers and a renewed give attention to getting probably the most worth out of units already in circulation.
On the similar time, the adoption of robotics and AI is reworking how units are processed, triaged, and graded. Automated methods are making evaluations quicker, extra constant, and extra exact, which helps enhance each effectivity and restoration charges. This pattern is prone to proceed, with robotics enjoying an even bigger function in each stage of the secondary market, from consumption to refurbishment.
We’re additionally seeing the business transfer past fundamental “buff and polish” beauty fixes. There’s now a a lot better emphasis on substantial repairs and complete refurbishment, pushed by each client expectations and sustainability objectives. Patrons need high quality and affordability, and sellers are responding with increased refurbishment requirements and licensed packages that construct belief and command higher costs.
Authentic tools producers, or OEMs, are additionally taking a extra lively function within the secondary market. They’re investing extra in trade-in packages, grading requirements, and resale channels, and by managing extra of the method themselves, they’re capable of maximize the residual worth of their merchandise. That is all a part of the broader business maturation, as everybody concerned turns into extra analytical and strategic about extracting worth at each step.
And, lastly, client demand for pre-owned and refurbished units continues to rise, fueled by environmental considerations and the growing price of recent units. Because the market grows, we’ll see much more innovation in round financial system fashions, with corporations making recommerce a core a part of their sustainability technique.
***
For a more in-depth take a look at our most up-to-date cell secondary market pricing knowledge and developments of particular top-performing fashions over Q1 2025, view our newest version of the B-Inventory Cell Insider.
