Ikea UK set to buy back furniture in new recycling scheme
By Caoimhe Toman
Date: Wednesday 05 May 2021
(Sharecast News) - Ikea UK is launching a plan to buy back unwanted furniture from customers to resell it and reduce its impact on the environment.
The group pledged a move towards a more circular model of consumption as items can be reused, recycled and rejigged.
Customers will be able to return furniture by registering a request online. Shoppers returning items will receive a refund card worth up to 50% of their original value to spend in store. The used furniture will then be sold in special areas in Ikea stores and via online second-hand goods site Gumtree.
Hege Sæbjørnsen, sustainability manager of Ikea UK & Ireland, said: "All retailers have to take this movement seriously. We have to remain relevant. Companies that don't really follow this and work with customers and the movement will find themselves not providing the services or needs that customers are asking for. It is also the right thing to do."
"We are supporting a healthy sustainable lifestyle, working together to move away from the linear model [in which used items are thrown away]."
Ikea's scheme was delayed from a planned November launch by the coronavirus lockdowns. It has been tested in Australia, Portugal and some stores in Scotland.
Peter Jelkeby, retail manager for Ikea UK & Ireland, said: "Through buyback we hope to make circular consumption mainstream; making it easier for customers to acquire, care for and pass on products in circular ways."
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