Delhi: Leading IT refurbished e-Commerce start up Xfurbish is spreading its area of operation in newer locations to tap the vast market of e-Waste.
After setting its foot firmly in India with offices at 27 geographical locations and over 500 vendors, the company has set up its international associates in UAE, Nigeria.
The company now plans to further expand its international network with new offices in USA, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Malaysia.
“While e-waste recycling is a source of income for many people in India, it also poses numerous health and environmental risks. More than 95 percent of India’s e-waste is illegally recycled by informal waste pickers called kabadiwalas or raddiwalas”, says Xfurbish Managing Director Venkatesh Rao.
Venkatesh launched this unique e-commerce platform for sellers of electronic waste and buyers of used electronic equipments with an objective to avoid unnecessary recycling of e-waste which poses a bigger health hazard and is not the solution when the same can be re-furbished and re-used
According to a market survey, the volume of the recycling business is 10-20 percent as compared to the new equipment sales.
“We aim to increase the share of refurbished equipments in the current market at least by 30-40 per cent by the end of the financial year 2021 and in the process the pollution generated by recycling of the e-waste will also be lowered”, adds Rao.
Current market reach of refurbished equipments is not effectively reaching Small Scale Industries, Schools, Colleges, Hospitals, Production Industries, due to lack of visibility or exposure of the refurbished equipment.
There is a void of trusted and organized source for refurbished IT products which is forcing the consumers to invest more in the new products. One way we are wasting available electronic units that can be reused and on the flip side, we are forcing to buy new products that will generate more amount of e-waste.
The Xfurbish program is helping create a value chain for the ever in demand electronics components. The company also through its various initiatives helps in creating awareness on e-waste, an opportunity for individuals, companies, and organizations to creating the right revenue for e-waste instead of recycling. The platform gives the ecosystem the Xfurbish protection and encourages sellers through authorized partner program.
Every electronic unit adheres to industry standards, with stringent testing norms and hence certifying that the product can be used further. Similarly, before listing any sellers into Xfurbish, the Quality Team does and audit, establish credibility and certify them in to Xfurbish Program. The team has evolved a successful model as the Xfurbish team has integrated additional care packs or protection for buyers, to boost consumers’ confidence.
Electronic Waste is emerging as a serious public health and environmental issue in India. India is the fifth-largest electronic waste producer in the world; as approximately 5.2 million tons of e-waste is generated annually and an undisclosed amount of e-waste is imported from other countries around the world.
E-waste produced in India comprises of 70 percent of computer devices, 12 percent in Telecom sector, 8 percent Medical Equipment, and 7% Electrical equipment. And as per the market survey, the reuse of Electronic Equipment waste in India is estimated at 10-15 percent while the rest of the E-Waste is going for Raw Material Extraction Recycling.
