Aihuishou's Q1 revenue was 6.16 billion yuan, with net profit increasing by nearly 80%.

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On May 19, the second-hand consumer electronics trading and service platform ATRenew (Aihuishou) Group released its financial results for the first quarter of 2026.

According to the financial report, in the first quarter the group’s total revenue reached 6.16 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 32.4%, surpassing the upper end of its previous revenue guidance. On the profit side, adjusted operating profit reached 190 million yuan, up 70.2% year-on-year; Non-GAAP net profit was 140 million yuan, up 79.6% year-on-year.

Through this set of remarkable double-digit growth data, it is clear that ATRenew’s underlying business logic is undergoing a substantial shift—from an early-stage light-weight aggregation platform mainly focused on recycling and traffic, to firmly positioning itself as a heavy-asset, full-chain circular retailer.

The improvement in profit does not stem from conceptual platform network effect premiums, but is instead built on the refined fulfillment management typical of traditional retail, and an increased share of ToC retail business.

In terms of revenue structure, ATRenew’s income is heavily reliant on its 1P (self-operated) business. In the first quarter, 1P product sales income reached 5.73 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 34.4%, accounting for more than 93% of total revenue; in contrast, 3P (platform) service revenue was 430 million yuan, up only 10.4% year-on-year.

The slowdown of 3P business growth versus the rapid expansion of the 1P business demonstrates that in the non-standard second-hand goods market, a pure platform matchmaking model struggles to address trust and quality assurance issues. Essentially, ATRenew is leveraging a highly committed self-operated capital chain to thoroughly absorb the residual value of used 3C products.

It is worth noting the structural evolution within the 1P business. In the past, ATRenew’s self-operated recycling mainly moved through a B2B model to downstream merchants—a wholesale model with fast turnover but low gross margin. The highlight of this year’s first quarter is the explosive growth in "compliant refurbishment business", where income from refurbished products overall grew by 76.1% year-on-year, and sales revenue from compliant refurbished devices to consumers (ToC) surged nearly 150% year-on-year.

Driven by this, the share of ToC retail in product revenue jumped significantly from 33% in the same period last year to 45.1%. In terms of business model evolution, bypassing middle wholesalers and selling directly to consumers through self-operated channels has greatly increased the ceiling for per-unit gross profit. This is the core driver for Non-GAAP operating margin rising from 2.4% in the same period last year to 3.1%.

In heavy-asset retail models, expanding offline stores and staff size is often a black hole that devours profits. Yet, ATRenew demonstrated strong cost control against the trend in the first quarter.

Data shows that by the end of the first quarter of 2026, ATRenew’s offline store count had increased from 1,886 in the same period last year to 2,156, covering 297 cities; number of field staff grew from 1,765 to 2,248. Despite increased fixed asset and labor costs, its Non-GAAP fulfillment and sales expense ratio improved year-on-year.

This seemingly contradictory data is essentially the scale effect brought about when local network density crosses a critical point. The report disclosed that in key business scenarios, the proportion of face-to-face deliveries has reached 80%.

This figure is highly significant for the industry; for used 3C, mail-in recycling faces very high rates of item loss, grading disputes, and reverse logistics costs. By making transactions face-to-face through dense mall locations and field teams, ATRenew—increasing customer acquisition costs at the front end—has sharply reduced back-end friction and logistics loss, validating the economic model for single stores/personnel.

Beyond its 3C base, ATRenew is now leveraging its 2,000+ physical stores for horizontal expansion.

By the end of the first quarter, 966 stores nationwide offered multi-category recycling. The data is impressive: overall recycling GMV grew 81.5% year-on-year, with gold trading volume up 83.3%, and second-hand luxury trading volume up 58.8% year-on-year.

From an asset reuse perspective, adding gold and luxury recycling to the original 3C stores does spread rent and labor costs, improving per-square-meter sales efficiency. However, from a deeper business logic standpoint, this isn’t a one-time strategic solution.

Gold recycling is a highly standardized business—prices are extremely transparent, margins razor-thin, and it is usually considered a tool to boost GMV, making a limited contribution to net profit; the luxury sector, on the other hand, is quite the opposite—characterized by high transaction value, high margins, extreme non-standardization, and huge dependence on specialist authentication and inventory capital tied up.

Whether ATRenew can establish a standardized quality inspection system for luxury goods as it has for 3C, and effectively mitigate inventory price-drop risk, still requires a lengthy validation period.

According to its balance sheet, by the end of Q1, ATRenew held a total of 1.72 billion yuan in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. During this period of fluctuating macro consumption expectations, this cash reserve provides a necessary safety cushion for its heavy-asset operations.

Overall, ATRenew's first quarter 2026 earnings report is a performance statement that strips out the froth of internet platforms and returns to the essence of retail. Its future valuation logic will be strictly anchored in its inventory turnover management, penetration of ToC refurbishment retail, and whether its vast offline team can continue to eke out operational efficiency in a low-margin era.

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