Business

Bored with your flat pack furniture? Ikea will buy it back

Retailer will sell secondhand items in stores in effort to promote sustainability

Ikea’s ‘Buy Back’ initiative is part of the company’s aim to become ‘a fully circular and climate positive business by 2030’, it said. Photograph: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire

Tue Oct 13 2020 - 17:52

People tired of their flat pack Ikea dressers, drawers, cabinets and tables will now be able to sell them back to the furniture retailer for resale in its stores as secondhand.

The world’s biggest furniture group said the “Buy Back” initiative was part of its aim to become “a fully circular and climate positive business by 2030”.

Under the scheme customers will get vouchers to spend at Ikea stores, the value of which depends on the condition of the furniture they are selling back.

The initiative will be promoted in a campaign running from November 24th to December 3rd, though the offer will continue after that date.

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Customers with “as new” items, with no scratches, will get 50 per cent of the original price, “very good” items, with minor scratches, will get 40 per cent, and “well used”, with several scratches, will get 30 per cent.

One possible catch for customers from the scheme is that products must be returned “fully assembled”.

Ikea said vouchers will have no expiry date to encourage customers to purchase items only when they are needed.

“By making sustainable living more simple and accessible, Ikea hopes that the initiative will help its customers take a stand against excessive consumption this Black Friday and in the years to come,” it said in reference to November 27th, when lots of retailers offer big discounts on their products.

Ikea said anything that cannot be resold will be recycled or donated to charity.

By 2021, Ikea plans to have dedicated areas in every store where people can sell back their old furniture and find repaired or refurbished furniture.

Last week, Ikea said it sees sales returning to growth this year after the coronavirus crisis boosted shoppers’ interest in spending more on their homes, a trend it believes is here to stay. - Reuters

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