Are household appliance cardboard boxes actually invisible wealth? The second-hand platform TV cardboard box is priced at 500 yuan

Cover News Reporter Ma Mengfei

What, the electrical cardboard box you threw away may sell for tens or even hundreds of yuan?

Recently, as Double Eleven approaches, many online shopping platforms have started to offer early discounts and promotions. Consumers are gradually buying more products online, and home appliances have become one of the key areas of concern for consumers due to their significant discounts. At the same time, online shopping for household appliances will leave behind a pile of "byproduct" cardboard boxes, and these "waste" cardboard boxes are becoming a new commodity. Compared to selling to scrap recycling stations, the value of cardboard boxes can instantly increase by more than 10 times.

On October 29th, the reporter saw on a second-hand trading platform that cardboard boxes for large household appliances such as televisions, washing machines, refrigerators, and air conditioners were all sold, with prices ranging from 20 yuan to hundreds of yuan, and some could even be sold for two or three hundred yuan. Why can these 'waste' be sold at such a high price?

The reporter learned from multiple buyers and sellers that the buyers of these cardboard boxes are mainly consumers who need to return or exchange household appliances, because returning or exchanging household appliances requires cardboard packaging or purchasing original cardboard boxes for resale.

Home appliance cardboard boxes on second-hand trading platforms

I spent 200 yuan buying a second-hand cardboard box

"I'm the one who got the big grievance, and I bought a box at 200 yuan including the freight." Mr. Chen complained bitterly to reporters that he had bought a TV carton at a high price last year, because the TV failed just two weeks after buying it, so he was ready to return it.

But after asking the merchant, Mr. Chen was told that he needed the original packaging to return, and the original packaging cardboard box had already been thrown away by him. I had no choice but to go to a second-hand platform to see if there were any for sale, but I really found it

Mr. Chen said that his TV is 85 inches and the brand is a little niche, so he only found one seller on the second-hand trading platform, with a price of 50 yuan, including the original carton and foam board, which he felt was acceptable. But because the distance is far and the box is too large, the courier can only find one car to pull it, so the shipping cost is 150 yuan. At that time, I was in a hurry to change the TV, so I had no choice but to buy it at a high price

I didn't expect that the first money I made from renovating my house was actually selling cardboard boxes. "Ms. Li from Guangdong bought an 86 inch TV for renovating her new house and sold it for 100 yuan on a second-hand platform on the third day." I was planning to throw it away, but the decorator said the box was very valuable and could be kept for sale

Of course, there are many consumers who are unaware and choose to throw away or sell their waste directly. The reporter bought a Xiaomi 75 inch TV last year and threw away the cardboard box on the same day. Currently, there are sellers selling it for 70 yuan on second-hand trading platforms. I just realized how valuable electrical cardboard boxes are! I won't sell them casually anymore, "Ms. Wang sighed. When she saw others selling idle TV cardboard boxes on Xianyu, her first reaction was: I'm crazy about being poor, this can also be sold! Opening the comment section, I feel like I've lost a billion.

New home appliance cardboard boxes can also be purchased on online shopping platforms

There are also many users selling products in the comment section on social media platforms

Electrical returns and exchanges require cardboard packaging

Subsequently, the reporter entered the keyword "home appliance cardboard box" on the second-hand trading platform, and a variety of cardboard boxes from home appliance brands such as TV, refrigerator, air conditioner, washing machine, etc. appeared, almost covering mainstream brands on the market, with prices ranging from tens to hundreds of yuan.

Taking an 85 inch TV as an example, the price varies from tens of yuan to 200 yuan depending on the brand, and it is not free of charge. It is recommended to pick it up by yourself. Among them, the reporter saw that an 86 inch TV cardboard box from a certain brand was even sold for 500 yuan. In addition, the reporter consulted multiple waste recycling stations in Chengdu, and found that the recycling price for cardboard boxes is basically 0.4 yuan/jin, while the recycling price for ordinary TV cardboard boxes is about 5 yuan.

TV cardboard box priced at 500 yuan

From this perspective, the selling price of original packaging boxes for household appliances on online second-hand platforms is much higher than the recycling price of cardboard boxes, and their value has even skyrocketed by more than 10 times.

In fact, the topic of buying and selling household appliance cardboard boxes has been ongoing on social media platforms for a long time. Reporters have found that many netizens have said that these cardboard boxes are basically thrown away or sold to waste recycling stations. Consumers who purchase cardboard boxes are almost always used for return and exchange packaging, or for second-hand sales.

Furthermore, there are also many second-hand trading platforms where home appliance cardboard boxes have been unsold for a long time. Overall, the reason why home appliance cardboard boxes can be sold at high prices depends on the supply and demand relationship in the market. For those who need returns and exchanges, this is a must-have. Regarding the issue of home appliance returns and exchanges, the reporter also consulted personnel from multiple courier companies such as SF Express, YTO Express, and ZTO Express, all of whom stated that these large electrical appliances do not have their original packaging boxes and are generally not accepted by courier due to the high risk of transportation damage.

In addition, the reporter also learned from online shopping platforms that an 85 inch shipping logistics full set of specialized packaging cardboard boxes is priced at 213 yuan. From this, it can be seen that second-hand home appliance cardboard boxes on second-hand trading platforms still have a certain price advantage.

Customer service said that without packaging cardboard boxes, returns cannot be made

Is it reasonable to not return or exchange goods without packaging cardboard boxes?

It is not difficult to find that the transformation of cardboard boxes from "scrap" to "commodity" is due to the merchant's request for packaging boxes for returns and exchanges.

The reporter contacted the sales customer service of several well-known electrical appliance companies through e-commerce platforms to inquire about the return and exchange situation, and all of them clearly stated that an outer packaging box is required for returns and exchanges. So is this requirement reasonable? Does it conflict with the "seven day no reason return and exchange" rule? Regarding this, the reporter interviewed Lawyer Liu Yi from Taihe Tai Law Firm.

Liu Yi believes that the mandatory requirement of merchants is unreasonable. According to the provisions of the Consumer Rights Protection Law and the Interim Measures for the Seven Day No Reason Return of Online Purchased Goods regarding whether the returned goods are "intact", it refers to whether the goods themselves, accessories, and trademark markings are intact, and the packaging box is not within the scope of determining whether the goods are intact.

She further mentioned that requesting a return or exchange of the original packaging conflicts with the "seven day no reason return" policy, which requires the product to be in good condition and does not require a return or exchange of the original packaging. In the case where the product is in good condition, consumers can seek compensation for returns and exchanges.

On the other hand, Liu Yi also stated that for a seven day no reason return, although the outer packaging box of the product is not a necessary condition, attention should be paid to the integrity and completeness of the product when handling returns. If the product does not have an outer packaging box, it can be properly packaged to ensure that the product will not be damaged during return. Therefore, when purchasing goods, it is recommended to keep the intact outer packaging box for better handling of the return process.