Finnish startup Renow has secured a significant partnership with Nordic marketplace operator CDON, marking a step forward for its recommerce technology. Renow, which specializes in AI-driven inspection and resale of returned products, will handle CDON’s returns across the Nordics and relist them directly on the platform. The arrangement gives Renow a chance to demonstrate how its decentralized logistics model can reduce waste, shorten return cycles, and keep products in circulation. For CDON and its merchants, the collaboration offers a way to cut the costs of cross-border returns and open a new resale channel for customers.
Renow develops technology for the recommerce sector, focusing on how returned and second-cycle products are processed and resold. The company uses an AI-based grading system and a network of virtual warehouses to inspect and categorize items, offering its tools to retailers and logistics providers. On the consumer side, Renow facilitates the resale of returned goods and surplus stock from established brands, making them available as discounted, quality-verified products. Its model is designed to reduce waste in the e-commerce supply chain and extend the lifecycle of products.
CDON’s marketplaces serve customers in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland, with its central logistics hub located in Sweden. With products being sold by merchants across Europe, managing returns is both a complex and sometimes expensive operation for the customer. With the introduction of Renow’s local logistical network, CDON will reduce the cost and time spent for its customers. At the same time, making them available to customers in a fast and cost-efficient way increases the lifecycle of returned products.
For CDON’s merchants, the benefits are clear. Returned products can be resold locally instead of being shipped back to the country of origin, thereby reducing logistics costs. Customers gain value from a fast and easy return, while the merchant avoids a total loss. Through this process, CDON adds a new service layer that strengthens its relationships with merchants and enhances overall sustainability performance.
“We see recommerce as a natural next step for CDON and for e-commerce at large,” says Kattis Åström, CCO at CDON. “It’s about reducing waste, helping our merchants cut costs, and giving customers more affordable and sustainable choices. Renow brings the technology, infrastructure, and mindset needed to make this happen. We value partners who move fast, think long term, and share our focus on the customer experience.”
Reselling returned goods has historically been a slow and inefficient process, often resulting in bulk disposal or warehouse buildup. By integrating Renow’s AI-powered recommerce infrastructure and decentralized logistics network, CDON can now handle returned products locally, inspect and grade them using Renow’s technology, and resell them to consumers directly on its marketplaces – quickly, sustainably, and with full transparency on product quality.
Through the partnership, CDON’s resellable returns are processed and relisted in a recommerce category. Customers can purchase quality-verified, discounted products with buyer protection and fast delivery. Each product is inspected and graded by Renow’s AI system, which integrates directly with CDON’s customer service workflows to streamline the process from return to resale.
“For ecommerce platforms, returns are typically seen as a headache,” says Kalle Koutajoki, CEO and co-founder of Renow. “With CDON, we’re turning that challenge into a scalable circular model. Our platform helps process returns locally, reduces unnecessary transport and waste, and extends the life of products that still have plenty of value to offer.”
With circular commerce gaining traction and new EU regulations promoting more sustainable practices, the CDON-Renow partnership sets an example for the Nordic e-commerce ecosystem. It also signals a new opportunity for merchants across the region.
“Our goal is to make it easy for marketplaces and merchants to participate in recommerce without building everything from scratch. With CDON, we’re showing what’s possible. We’re ready to expand this model with other players in the region,” Koutajoki concludes.
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Read the orginal article: https://arcticstartup.com/renow-partners-with-cdon/
