The Importance of Reverse Supply Chains
Reducing Environmental Impact
The fashion industry is known for its significant environmental footprint. By embracing reverse supply chains, we can actively reduce waste and environmental impact. Instead of discarded jewellery ending up in landfills or collecting dust in drawers, we encourage our customers to give us their old unwanted jewellery. It doesn’t matter at all if it is broken into pieces or low quality, we will repurpose the things you no longer want into new, stunning creations or use them in our educational recycling workshops. By reworking existing pieces, we decrease the demand for new raw materials, ultimately conserving natural resources and mitigating the environmental consequences associated with mining and manufacturing processes.
Cultivating a Circular Economy
The reverse supply chain is a cornerstone of the circular economy, a model that aims to keep resources in circulation for as long as possible. Through our jewellery recycling workshops, we take a proactive approach to circularity. By inviting customers to participate, we encourage them to bring their unwanted or outdated jewellery, which we transform into fresh, innovative designs. This practice not only reduces waste but also promotes a sense of community and involvement in sustainable initiatives.
Promoting Sustainability
Engaging people in the reverse supply chain process is important. By encouraging people to recycle their waste, we help create a sense of responsibility ultimately leading to reflecting on other bigger challenges our society is facing, like for example our economy’s dependency on fossil fuels.
Inspiring Industry-wide Change
By actively participating in reverse supply chain practices, we hope to inspire other players in the fashion industry to adopt similar approaches. This doesn’t encompass the so-called recycling programmes of big players in the industry, where less than 1% of used clothing gets recycled into new garments, overwhelming countries like Ghana with the discards. (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-11-02/h-m-zara-fast-fashion-waste-leaves-environmental-impact?in_source=embedded-checkout-banner)
We want to lead by example and inspire true and effective recycling practices, and actually help reduce the waste on our planet by showing that striking jewellery and fashion can be made out of waste and there is no need for the production and sourcing of new raw materials. Sustainability is not a solitary endeavour but a collective responsibility. By encouraging industry-wide adoption, we can accelerate the shift towards sustainable practices on a larger scale.
At squïd, our dedication to sustainability extends beyond mere words. We have embraced the power of reverse supply chains to drive positive change in the fashion industry. By actively encouraging customers to donate their waste (only in the form of old and broken chains and jewellery and larger textiles like tablecloths or bedding - don’t bring us your banana peels just yet) and hosting recycling workshops, we transform waste into modern designs to show trash is beautiful. We believe that through these efforts, we can contribute to a more sustainable future and inspire others to follow. Together, we can redefine the way we approach fashion, promote responsible consumption, and pave the way for a circular economy.
