This recommerce site is tackling retail’s 8-billion-pound problem—returns—with buy-in from Jay-Z and Serena Williams-founded VCs

Industry Overview - The U.S. faces a significant overstock and returns crisis, with 8.4 billion pounds of products returned to online sellers annually, representing about 17% of retailer inventory [1] - Retailers typically dispose of returned products in landfills, as this can be written off as a business cost, leading to a lack of investment in reverse supply chains [1] Company Insights - Rebel, a recommerce site, has raised $25 million in a Series B funding round to develop a resale network and supporting software for retailers, with notable investors including Jay-Z's MarcyPen Capital Partners and Serena Ventures [2] - The company, founded by Emily Hosie, aims to address the issue of returns ending up in landfills by selling written-off products at discounts of 40% to 70% [3] - Rebel operates a 300,000-square-foot warehouse in North Carolina, processing over 70,000 unique products weekly, with new deals added to its website every 15 minutes [4] Technology and Operations - Rebel utilizes AI technology to inspect, log, and tag the condition of each return, optimizing the process of receiving products from retailers and shipping them to consumers [4] - The company has developed a smart-pricing algorithm that adjusts item prices based on demand, condition, and inventory more than 10 times a day [5] - Rebel plans to expand its physical presence to the West Coast by 2026 [5]