Swedish furniture giant Ikea has launched its own second-hand online marketplace so that customers can sell directly to each other, just as they would, for example, on eBay or Facebook Marketplace.

Ikea’s online marketplace, called Ikea Preowned, is currently available only in Madrid and Oslo, though the site is expected to be available globally by December.

Sellers on Ikea Preowned have the option to get paid via a bank transfer with no added fees, or they can receive an Ikea gift card with an extra 15 per cent added to the furniture’s purchase price.

As for buyers, after they make a purchase on the site, they will be able to chat directly with the seller and arrange a time and place to meet to get the items.

Ikea says that buyers can be refunded their money and are allowed to cancel their order if they change their mind or “if the seller is unresponsive, or if any items were misrepresented.”

For sellers, making a listing is free, but subsequently, there could be “a symbolic fee, a humble fee,” said Jesper Brodin, CEO of Ingka Group, according to the Financial Times.

As of now, here in Australia while a direct consumer-to-consumer sale of Ikea second-hand service isn’t facilitated by Ikea, it does sell second-hand Ikea furniture within its physical stores.

The As-Is section in Ikea stores has discontinued items, second-hand furniture and ex-showroom displays. Buyers can visit Ikea’s Australia website, select their local store and pre-reserve an item available in the the As-Is section of that specific store.

With Ikea’s buy back and resell service in Oz, customers can fill out a form online to get a quote on their old Ikea furniture. They can then bring it to their nearest Ikea store where Ikea staff will check its condition and confirm the final valuation, which can be as high as 50 per cent of the original value. Those customers can then get Ikea credit for that amount.

With Ikea Preowned, it will take Ikea out of the equation of facilitating the purchase and sale of its preowned products.

Earlier this month, Australia Post and Ikea announced a new partnership, entering into a three-year agreement to expand Ikea’s delivery footprint in Australia.

Australia Post will therefore become the Swedish company’s primary e-commerce fulfilment partner for small and medium parcels, accounting for approximately 65 per cent of IKEA Australia’s total number of parcel orders.