ATRenew gears up to take its recycling act global

The company said it has begun exporting Chinese devices, and plans to build up that part of its business over the next two to three years

Key Takeaways:

• ATRenew’s revenue rose 27% in the third quarter, as it unveiled a roadmap for the next two to three years that includes a new emphasis on exports
• The company recorded a record profit for the quarter and strong gross margin gains, as its direct-to-consumer retail sales improved

By Doug Young

ATRenew Inc. (RERE.US) believes it has mastered the art of recycling, having honed its skills over 14 years of reselling used smartphones, PCs and other electronics, as well as its more recent move into recycling other items like luxury bags and vintage liquors. Now, the company hopes to take its AHS Recycle brand global, seeking to leverage its position as China’s leading recycler with state-of-the-art collection, refurbishment and distribution capabilities developed over more than a decade in business.

The global expansion was a highlight of ATRenew’s roadmap for the next two to three years laid out in its call with analysts to discuss its third-quarter results on Nov. 20. Those results showed ATRenew continued to post strong double-digit revenue growth, feeding off growing awareness of its services for not only smartphones that are its core specialty, but also a growing number of other used products.

And equally important, the company recorded its fifth consecutive quarterly net profit, which reached a record high, showing its recycling operation is becoming more effective as the company gains scale and experience. Reflecting that, its gross margin for product sales, which account for 92% of total revenue, rose to 13.4% from 11.7% a year earlier.

ATRenew has dabbled in international expansion before, mostly through partnerships in places like Japan and Sweden. But its latest comments indicate international expansion with exports of more China-sourced products will become a major priority – and potential new growth engine – in the next two to three years.

Speaking on the earnings call, founder and Chairman Chen Xuefeng, who also uses the English name Kerry, noted that ATRenew has already begun selling Chinese devices abroad, with the number of such China-sourced devices that it exported topping 10,000 per month. He added that the southern port city of Hong Kong, with its international focus, is rapidly emerging as a hub for selling recycled Chinese products to the rest of the world.

“Looking forward, as domestic recycling penetration rates increase and standards become further clarified, we believe there will be more exports,” he said, detailing two potential paths forward on the company’s export journey. One involves its B2B-focused PJT Marketplace, with plans to launch an international version of the platform. “Simultaneously, we will, at the appropriate time, integrate with the international layouts of our strategic partners to provide solutions and jointly explore the broader retail opportunities in the global markets,” Chen said.

Reflecting its rising global profile, which could help its broader export campaign, the company also disclosed that it was named as a finalist for this year’s Earthshot Prize, a global environmental award founded by Britain’s Prince William, which recognizes “outstanding contributions across five categories aimed at repairing our planet.”

The international expansion was part of a “three-stage development strategy” detailed by the company on its earnings call, with plans for implementation over the next two to three years. China is currently in the process of crafting its own new national 15^th Five Year Plan for 2026 to 2030, and will almost certainly include recycling as part of its broader efforts to promote environmental protection and reduced carbon emissions.

ATRenew and other “green” companies will almost certainly benefit from such emphasis due to the strong state support they are likely to receive in helping the government reach its objectives. Such support can come in a wide range of forms, from government grants to low-interest loans and faster approvals for things like setting up new facilities and obtaining permits.

Growing fulfillment team

Apart from international expansion, the two other planks of ATRenew’s three-stage development strategy for the next two to three years include continuing to strengthen its core capabilities, and accelerating the positioning of its AHS Recycle as “China’s leading recycling brand,” Chen said. It will do the first by building up its scenario, fulfillment and refurbishment capabilities, and through use of more technology. It will continue to build the AHS Recycle name by partnering with other consumer brands and also leveraging LOVERE, which it describes as its “ecosystem extension of AHS Recycle.”

In a notable shift in its core capabilities, the company suggested it will start giving more emphasis to its rapidly growing team of fulfillment specialists who make in-person visits to people looking to trade in their products. That team of more than 1,000 complements the company’s growing network of AHS recycling stores, which numbered 2,195 at the end of September. The company appears to be slowing its previous aggressive rate of new store openings, with about 100 new outlets added in the third quarter, or about half the 206 it added in the second.

“Moving forward, the pace of new store openings will be dynamically balanced with the expansion of our to-door service teams to ensure the efficiency of both our physical locations and personnel,” Chen said.

The growing store network and fulfillment team is part of ATRenew’s strategy that combines such offline outlets and customer service teams with online trading over different platforms covering C2B, B2B and B2C scenarios. That wide range of options is complemented by an increasingly diverse range of products, including the company’s core electronics, along with its more recently added “multi-category” business offering other products like used handbags, gold and vintage liquor.

ATRenew noted that the “multi-category” business has been growing quickly since its inception two years ago, with related transaction volumes up 95% in the third quarter year-on-year operating from 1,009 of its stores. Still, that business remains relatively small, accounting for about 53 million yuan ($7.46 million), or 12.5% of the company’s service revenue in the third quarter.

The big majority of ATRenew’s revenue still comes from product sales, which grew 28.7% to 4.73 billion yuan in the third quarter from 3.67 billion yuan a year earlier. The company’s total revenue, which includes both products and services, rose 27.1% in the third quarter to 5.15 billion yuan year-on-year.

As its operations have become more efficient, the company’s merchandise costs dropped to 86.6% of its total revenue from 88.3% a year earlier. That drop is reflected in its improving margins, which come as the company hones its operations through measures like selling more recycled and refurbished products directly to consumers. The company has also automated a growing number of its processes, and does more recycling at the city level to lower costs.

The bottom line saw ATRenew’s adjusted operating income jump 34.9% year-on-year to a record 140 million in the third quarter, as its GAAP net income shot up 407% to a record 90.8 million yuan.

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