EBay trims Depop shipping rates, bolsters delivery features

The company is using AI to enable fast-but-reliable delivery promises and help sellers determine shipping costs more easily, CEO Jamie Iannone said.

Shipping costs — which have climbed this year amid rising fuel fees — can represent a large portion of the total price for lower-cost fashion items, CFO Peggy Alford noted on an August earnings call. According to Alford, reduced rates could encourage more transactions for the Depop marketplace, which eBay acquired in July for $1.4 billion.

"So by increasing the affordability at a broader range of price points, we're seeing increased conversion, more customer acquisition, converting those buyers into enthusiasts," Alford said.

Beyond Depop, eBay has launched several new shipping features for sellers. The marketplace recently deployed an improved artificial intelligence-powered delivery date model in six major export markets, increasing the number of products the company can offer "with a fast delivery promise while maintaining reliability," Iannone said. The export markets are the U.S., China, U.K., France, Canada and Poland, an eBay spokesperson told Supply Chain Dive in an email.

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