The UK arm of a marketplace for professionally refurbished phones, laptops and other electronics, which launched in the UK in 2020.
Back Market runs an online marketplace for refurbished technology: phones, laptops, tablets, consoles and household electronics that have been tested, repaired where needed and sold on at a lower price than new. It does not refurbish the devices itself. Instead it brings together professional refurbishers and buyers, and each device is graded on how it looks and how well it works, with customers choosing from three condition levels. Refurbishers have to pass a screening process before they are allowed to sell, and those who pass receive what the company calls a Back Label. Its tagline is "In refurbished we trust."
Back Market was launched in Paris in November 2014 by Thibaud Hug de Larauze, Quentin Le Brouster and Vianney Vaute. Its stated mission is to "rid the world of over-priced and outdated technology", and it describes itself as helping to free the planet from electronic waste (the broken and discarded gadgets that pile up when we replace devices too quickly). It is certified as a B Corp, a label for businesses that meet standards on social and environmental performance, and a French "Entreprise à Mission", which means it has written its purpose into its company rules. The company says it has sold more than 30 million refurbished devices across 17 markets.
The company launched in the UK in 2020. A London & Partners case study says the UK is its fastest-growing international market, and that London & Partners helped it make contacts in London's tech scene. Katy Medlock has been named as its UK general manager. We could not confirm a UK office address in the pages we read, and one job listing for a UK-focused customer care role was based in Bordeaux, France, so some UK work is clearly done from continental Europe. Treat the UK team as a mix of UK-based and Europe-based colleagues until you can check the company's own pages.
On culture, the company's own job pages describe the team as talented, humble and passionate, with an inclusive, fast-paced and friendly atmosphere, and say they offer flexible hours and a couple of days a week working from home. That listing is several years old, so check it is still current. The company has also been publicised for its "Join the refurb revolution" message and for advertising that uses the founder's mother as the face of a guarantee on refurbished tech.
The work done in a marketplace business like this covers customer care, quality and returns, marketing, product design, software and data teams, and partnership managers who work with refurbishers and retailers. Back Market's profile on the Bright Network graduate employers site lists it under consumer and retail, and its jobs board has included roles in sales, accounting, product design and engineering. If you like technology and want to see how reuse can become a normal way to shop, this is a company to follow.
Website: www.backmarket.co.uk
PURPOSE helps school and university students explore 62 sectors and over 1,000 entry-level careers in the UK, then connects them directly with employers.
Explore PURPOSE