Business & Money | Tuesday 20 January, 2015 11:41 am |

dubizzle – the leading classifieds website in the Middle East and North Africa has concluded a Saudi wide research, the first of its kind to be conducted in the Kingdom – supported by a study conducted by global market research firm YouGov. The results of the research, which focuses on unused household items across the Kingdom, estimate that there is a total of 900 million unused household items in Saudi Arabia valued at a total of SAR 370 billion.

By combining the survey figures from YouGov with data collected from dubizzle directly about the average price of hundreds of thousands of items, it was possible to estimate the worth of these unwanted items at SAR 370 billion. These items could be sold from consumer to consumer to create an injection of cash into the local economy.

“Saudi Arabia’s hidden treasures are not buried beneath the desert sand; they are inside everyone’s home. Internet users in the Kingdom are sitting on heaps of cash, which they are not aware of”, said Abdullah Al Ghadouni – GM for Saudi Arabia at dubizzle

The research indicates an estimated 60 million unused mobile phones, which is 5 x times higher than mobile phones in the UAE. The total value of these unused mobile phones worth SAR 56 billion - double the cost of Saudi Arabia’s Railway project.

It’s not just mobile phones that are lying dormant – the research shows that there are over 288 million unwanted books, that’s also enough to educate all the illiterate individuals in India! Fashion also had its share in the research - Saudis have around 222 million unused fashion items in their household, which are capable of clothing all the poor people globally.

“A basic realignment of consumer goods can build a secondhand economy. The research revealed that every Saudi household has around 18 unwanted books, 13 unused cloths and 4 unloved toys. If these items were reshuffled in the community and move to other homes, they can make a real impact in their local community”, continued Al Ghadouni.

“We carried out this research because we wanted to show fellow Saudis that almost anyone with an internet connection can make extra cash through selling something they own and no longer want. That item can be anything because online classified platforms allow you to connect with so many more people that you may never have met with in the past – meaning the likelihood of finding a buyer is very high,” Al Ghadouni concluded.

A summary of the research is publicly available in an info-graphic done by dubizzle, and can be useful to the consumer in realizing what is available in the market, which items best hold their value, which items are in high demand, and how best to make an additional income.

dubizzle.com has four main sections: Property (for sale and rent), Motors, Jobs and Items For Sale. It is headquartered in the UAE, and is also available in Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia.