Refurbed tech has become a multi-billion industry, but does it offer good value? Lee Grant investigates
Anyone looking for replacement tech will have spotted plenty of offers for refurbished devices nestling among the traditional adverts for new products. The refurbished electronics sector was valued at $85.4 billion in 2021, according to Transparency Market Research, and is predicted to swell to more than $250 billion within the decade. To put that into clearer context, more than half of all phones in circulation at the end of last year were second hand, according to estimates from analysts CCS Insight.
Refurb has matured from a jumble sale full of scratched screens and dead batteries to global names selling warranty-backed, risk-free products, giving customers access to top-tier tech at cheaper prices.
Although refurb looks impressive on corporate eco-credentials, forecasts state that the UK will still generate the highest amount of WEEE per capita globally in 2024. To understand why, we’ll speak to sustainability experts to learn how refurb should be better integrated into the UK’s circular economy and why we need to keep products in use for longer.
We’ll also step into the workshops of professional refurbishers to see how they’re battling technology’s short lifecycle in order to transform the retail landscape into a place where buying refurb is our default choice.
As good as renew
The Renew Hub in Manchester is a magical place. It’s the UK’s largest re-use facility, redirecting pre-used items through the hands of skilled refurbishers before going back on sale (tinyurl.com/356refurb).
It’s industrial-scale refurbishment resourced by Manchester’s authorities and waste management specialist, SUEZ. Furniture, bikes and household appliances are stripped, fixed, re-sprayed, re-upholstered, reimagined and reused.
The Renew Hub demonstrates refurb can deliver profit through retail while benefitting both environment and community. Over 20 green jobs have been created and its outreach teaches local schoolchildren about waste and refurb.
Since its inception, more than 180,000 items have passed through the Renew Hub, covering a wide range of product categories, but skills and resources currently mean that laptops, phones or small electronic device aren’t part of the project. Refurbishing technology is difficult, but one of the UK’s biggest names in tech retail is embracing the
