Jeremy Ji, chief strategy officer at ATRenew, told CNBC that the consumer electronics reseller is seeing more people trade-in their older MacBooks for a more powerful one.

Thanks to tighter budgets and a growing taste for retro tech, Chinese millennials and Gen Z consumers – who once chased the latest iPhone or Android handset – are increasingly turning to second-hand markets for upgrades or bargains.

ATRenew is a tech platform designed to give a second life to electronic devices through large-scale recycling and trading. Established in 2011, the company has over 2,000 offline stores in 291 cities across China, offering data-driven systems for smartphones and other electronic devices.

ATRenew became the finalist of The Earthshot Prize 2025.

ATRenew Inc., a Chinese platform for second-hand electronics recycling and trading, expects a sharp rise in consumer trade-ins following Apple Inc.'s iPhone 17 launch.

ATRenew announced robust financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024, highlighting strong revenue growth and profitability driven by accelerating trade-in services and diversified product offerings.

ATRenew, which operates China's largest online trading platform for pre-owned consumer electronic devices, is poised to benefit from trade-in programme for consumer goods to boost flagging consumption.

China's announced stimulus will begin to take effect this year, but it will likely take time to see a significant impact.

Kerry Chen was named one of TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential Climate Leaders in Business for 2024.

Rex Chen, ATRenew's CFO told CNBC the policy supports the longer-term development of the secondhand goods market.