For Gen Z, Facebook is a marketplace

In December, Alicia Chiu and Cher Su had only a few boxes when they moved into a small apartment in New York's Lower East Side. Before moving from Los Angeles, the two friends knew they would need to furnish their new apartment with small kitchen appliances, decor and furniture. But instead of buying new items, they realized it would be easier to find used goods on Facebook Marketplace, the social network's buying and selling service.

“I only use Facebook for Marketplace,” said Ms. Chiu, 24, who added that she spent most of her social time on TikTok and Instagram, which are owned by Meta, Facebook's parent company.

For many people in their 20s who don't have a lot of disposable income, Marketplace is a place to get deals on items they normally can't afford.

“As someone in their 20s, I want nicer things but I don’t have the financial means to reach that goal yet,” Ms Chiu said. She added that she prefers Marketplace over other sites because its interface is easy to use. Use, making it easier to find deals on furniture.

Over the past decade, Facebook's popularity with Generation Z has declined as a social site, a 2022 Pew Research Center Poll is found. Instead, young people are spending more of their social time on Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat.

“Facebook Marketplace is often referred to as the ‘online retail store,’ and is a modern counterpart to eBay and Craigslist,” he said. Yoo Kyung-seokprofessor of textiles, merchandising and interior decorating at the University of Georgia, who teaches Consumer behavior among Generation Z and Millennials And Environmental sustainability In the textile industry. “The platform’s remarkable success is largely due to users’ trust in it, which is a result of its unique connection to the Facebook social network.”

For that generation Environmentally conscious Shopping for used goods is preferred, and the Marketplace has become popular.

“Young people, including students and young professionals, are increasingly attracted to second-hand goods,” says Dr. Seok He said. Rapid inflation has made used purchases a practical option, she added.

Marketplace launched in 2016, and includes more than one billion Monthly active users and is the second most popular site online for used goods, after eBay, according to 2022 survey By Statista, a company that provides market data. Meta doesn't say much about Marketplace as a business, how its demographics might differ from Facebook in general and whether it has a vision for growing the platform in its annual reports. Meta did not respond to questions about whether it has long-term business goals for the Marketplace or if it is aware of the platform's popularity among Gen Z.

Some buyers say they are Prefer the market Through Craigslist, which has been popular among older generations looking for used goods, because unlike Craigslist users, Marketplace buyers and sellers have profiles with ratings that make them more trustworthy, and messaging is built into Facebook, making communication easy.

The marketplace is free for buyers to use. Although sellers can face Transfer feesMany avoid this by selling locally and asking buyers to bring cash when picking up their purchases. Ms. Chiu said she usually pays using Venmo, although she will bring cash if the seller insists.

Ms. Chiu and Ms. Su said their favorite Marketplace purchase was a sofa from West Elm, which the seller acquired less than a year ago. The sofa cost $1,200 at retail, and they bought it for $145. Ms. Chiu said the seller warned her that the sofa had cat scratch marks, but when she and Ms. Su came out to look at it, they didn't see many scratches.

Some of their other favorite Marketplace finds include the Zojirushi rice cooker (retail: $150; purchased on Marketplace for $50), Dyson vacuum cleaner (retail: $470; purchased on Marketplace for $135) and a table IKEA NORDEN EXTENDABLE (Retail price: $350; purchased on Marketplace for $150).

In total, Ms. Chiu and Ms. Su said they spent nearly $1,400 on more than 30 items purchased from the Marketplace, and estimated they saved more than $3,000.

Not all of Ms. Chiu and Ms. Su's purchases were successful: Ms. Chiu once bought a plant from a vendor that she discovered was infected with root rot when she tried to move it to another pot. Buyers have to settle returns with sellers on Marketplace, and Ms. Chiu's factory seller later offered her a 50 percent refund of the price she paid, which she accepted. Ms. Su said that she once bought a bookshelf that collapsed when she returned home. She was not able to get a refund.

Ms. Su said she was aware of Marketplace scams and tried to avoid them. “There are many scammers who try to ask for personal information when sending messages about items – so beware of that too!” I warned. (Meta provides users with guides about He distinguishes And to avoid Scams.)

Sebastian Ramos, a student at DePaul University in Chicago, also uses Marketplace to buy and sell items, and he once even got a free sofa (estimated retail price: $1,300). He also purchased acrylic vinyl record racks (estimated retail price: $45; purchased on Marketplace for $10) and sold a used Nintendo 3DS (retail price: $200; sold on Marketplace for $150).

Mr. Ramos, 21, said he didn't use Facebook for social media, but he enjoyed buying used items on Marketplace to save money and also because he liked shopping at thrift stores.

“You don't have to pay more for something new when you can find something that's been used, or even used a little bit, for a much cheaper price,” he said.

Sarah Williams, who lives in Kenosha, Wisconsin, is an executive assistant and new mother. Shortly after she and her husband found out they were expecting a baby last year, Ms. Williams said Marketplace was the first place she started looking to buy baby supplies.

The first item on her list was a light-colored wooden bed. But the cribs she found online were listed at $1,200 and were out of her budget.

“The prices were absolutely ridiculous,” Ms. Williams, 24, said.

After a rigorous two-week online search, she found a crib she liked that a woman who lived nearby had listed on Marketplace. After messaging back and forth via Facebook Messenger with the seller, Ms. Williams and her husband drove to the woman's home to inspect the crib. They bought it for $300, 75% less than the original price, after seeing that it was in good condition.

“It was a very nice exchange, and I felt it was very elegant,” Ms. Williams said.

Ms. Williams said she hopes to find other mothers in the Marketplace who have items they no longer need because their children have outgrown them.

Like Ms. Williams, Ms. Chiu and Ms. Su said being able to socialize and meet new people when picking up their Marketplace purchases was a fun part of the experience of moving in and settling into their new home.

“This is what Facebook started with, and it's great that Marketplace is also enhancing that,” Ms. Su said.