Good Buy Gear

GoodBuy Gear operates an online managed marketplace through which parents, brands and retailers recirculate used and open-box baby and children's products, including strollers, bassinets, car seats, high chairs, carriers, rockers, changing pads and play mats. Items are listed with an assigned condition grade such as Open Box, Barely Used or Gently Used, shown alongside the original retail price and the discounted marketplace price, and are generally single-unit listings.

On the supply side, the company handles the operational work of resale for sellers: it offers at-home pickup or drop-off options and manages photographing, cleaning and listing items. Sellers can receive up to 85% of an item's sale value. On the demand side, buyers shop nationwide with shipping, with free shipping offered on orders above $100, and the company runs promotional offers tied to specific brands. Customer support is provided by chat and email during weekday business hours (9am-5pm EST).

The company has expanded its category coverage over time, including a 2023 move into selling pre-owned, quality-inspected car seats, and in August 2024 acquired JoyLet, a baby and kid gear rental membership service, discontinuing JoyLet's rental offering and moving those items to the GoodBuy Gear marketplace for purchase.

Founding story

The company was founded in 2016 by Kristin Langenfeld and Jessica Crothers as a marketplace for parents to buy and sell gently used baby and children's products; it is described as female-founded and mom-founded, with Langenfeld serving as CEO.

Business model

Managed marketplace: GoodBuy Gear takes in used and open-box baby and kid gear from parents, brands and retailers, inspects and grades it, and handles photography, cleaning and listing, with sellers receiving up to 85% of the sale value of each item sold. The company also works with brand and retail partners on recirculating inventory. Sources describe the business as a marketplace model.

Revenue is derived from sales of secondhand and open-box items on its marketplace, with sellers keeping up to 85% of an item's sale value and the remainder retained by the company.

Traction

As of June 2023 the company reported over 270,000 secondhand items sold and more than 12,000 families having resold items through the platform, with average year-over-year growth of 186% since 2018. In the first months of 2023 it doubled its base of brand and retail partners.

Latest developments

The August 2024 acquisition of JoyLet added the company's personalized gear roadmap concept to the GoodBuy Gear customer experience and moved former rental inventory onto the marketplace for sale. The site continues to list open-box and used gear from brands including Cybex, Halo, Joolz, Mockingbird, Silver Cross, Thule and Maxi-Cosi.