Championing consumption for a worthy cause

Most of its outlets are located at central business districts of major cities, and consumers can conveniently bring their used products to the stores. The company said buying secondhand stuff has become a new trend, especially among young consumers, and the penetration rate of secondhand consumption is rising in China.

Although full-year data for 2020 are yet to be released, sales of secondhand products last year in China are expected to reach 1.04 trillion yuan ($160 billion), growing 17.7 percent over the previous year, according to a projection by the LeadLeo Research Institute, a market research provider.

"More than 70 percent of secondhand product buyers are young people aged between 18 and 35, and more than 70 percent of the total have bachelor's or master's degrees," said Li Jincan, an analyst of LeadLeo.

"The demographic is more open-minded and receptive to used goods. They look for affordable and quality products with high cost performance. This buying behavior can help consumers to save money and help the society to save more resources and achieve sustainable development," she said.

In late February, the State Council, the country's Cabinet, issued a guideline aimed at accelerating the development of a green and low-carbon economic system.

The guideline calls for an effort to boost efficiency in the use of resources, strengthen the protection of the ecological environment, and effectively control greenhouse gas emissions.