PALO ALTO, CA — A tectonic shift is underway in Silicon Valley as Mercari announces it will become the first major US marketplace and selling app to eliminate seller fees.
Welcome news to the millions of Americans who use the app to buy and sell new and used goods on a daily basis.
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The first-of-its-kind shift kicks off a new business model for Mercari, handing a small win to sellers in an industry that tends to be more buyer-friendly.
Previously, Mercari charged a flat 10% final value fee in addition to a 2.9% + flat $0.50 payment processing fee — both of which are now eliminated.
The changes went into effect as of March 27th, 2024 for all newly created or updated listings.
“At a time when other marketplaces are raising fees for sellers, Mercari is doing just the opposite by becoming the first and only major U.S. resale marketplace to offer zero selling fees. This new model will be applied to all new listings starting today and will roll out sitewide in the coming weeks,” said John Lagerling, CEO of Mercari U.S.
The seller-friendly change gives users extra wiggle room to price their items more competitively and keep a higher portion of their earnings, putting immediate pressure on competing platforms to follow suit.
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It remains to be seen how Mercari will recoup the lost revenue associated with the 10% commission on every sale. For now, the payment processing fee has been passed to the buyer, setting Mercari more in line with the traditional market where businesses frequently pass the fee to consumers.
Buyers will additionally be asked to cover “a service fee” to allow the company to provide hassle-free returns for up to 3 days after item delivery.
“For the first time ever, Mercari shoppers can now initiate a return within three days for any reason with the assurance of a refund, less applicable fees,” stated the company press release. The change, undoubtedly, made to address common user complaints aimed at the company: a rigid and hard-to-use return process.
Looking Forward
As the landscape of online buying and selling evolves, all eyes will be on how other marketplaces respond to Mercari’s no-seller-fee model.
Whether this will spark a trend towards more seller-friendly practices in the e-commerce industry or lead to innovative alternative revenue models remains a pivotal question for the future.
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