Collaborating to make circularity the first choice for furniture
Collaborating to make circularity the first choice for furniture
We’ve all acquired a piece of furniture that we knew wasn’t quite right. Maybe it was that stopgap table while you save up for the timeless design you’d always dreamed of buying. Or perhaps your styles change, you finally completed that long overdue redecoration, or simply moved to a new home with new shapes to slot your furniture into.
These very natural human instincts – of change and renewal - are having a major real-word impact. A staggering 22 million pieces of furniture are thrown out every year in the UK.
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It’s a big challenge that needs big brands to get together and tackle. This is why eBay UK and WRAP are so passionate about the launch of our Circular Change Council – a collection of brilliant retailers in the UK who can make real change happen for non-new furniture.
We’ve already been joined by some of the homeware industry’s biggest brands including IKEA UK&IE, George at ASDA, Very, Sainsbury’s, Simba, Dunelm, British Retail Consortium and the British Heart Foundation. Together, we’re seeking to tackle UK furniture waste by demonstrating the value of non-new items.
At eBay, we’ve been driving circularity for 28 years and are convinced that it’s time for second-hand to become the first choice.
Driven partly by the cost-of-living crisis and partly by increased environmental awareness, we’ve seen an over 140% year-on-year increase in searches for non-new furniture.
Even the term second-hand is a term that comes with its own stigma, perhaps it’s time to give non-new a rebrand? To help encourage this surge in demand, the Circular Change Council will work with retailers to tackle this and other common barriers and make it easier and more attractive for people to find a good deal by buying non-new.
We’ll be focusing on changing perceptions to reduce needless furniture waste landfill, raising awareness of the value of second-hand furniture, and helping retailers ensure commercial viability.
And we’re calling for others to join the movement. If you’re interested in finding out more about the Circular Change Council, visit https://wrap.org.uk/circular-change-council.