The rising cost of living has seen customers head to the second-hand market to source affordable, quality products. The second-hand market in Australia was worth about $60 billion and is growing around 25% a year, and market indicators are predicting that it will continue to soar.
Capitilising on the second-hand market while also eager to lower their impact on the climate, is Koskela. Koskela is a Sydney-based furniture manufacturer that fits out offices and schools – a sector that can often generate a tremendous amount of waste.
Driven by data, Koskela’s owner Sasha Titchkosky says, "We've been measuring our carbon footprint for four years now and worked out that, basically, every time we had a good year, we could see our scope three emissions increase."
By buying back their old stock as they try to make the most of the growing popularity of the circular economy, the company plans to be fully circular by 2027. The process is quite simple. Customers trade in their returned items, and Koskela then refurbishes the product to offer for sale again, at a reduced price.
Another Koskela initiative is to offer their commercial clients a subscription service. Titchkosky explains, “The ownership never actually passes to the user of the items, we retain ownership, which means we're sort of incentivised to create really-high-quality products that last a long time."
"Huge amounts of commercial office furniture go into landfill every single year in Australia," said Ms Titchkosky. Ms Titchkosky said it would make its products available to more customers. "This gives them an opportunity to access our products at a cheaper price," she explained.
At Procurement Australia, our goal is to encourage our members to explore strategies that adopt a comprehensive approach, simultaneously emphasising affordability, quality, sustainability, and ethics. We understand the challenges of finding commercial furniture that meets these criteria. That's why we're excited to highlight our commercial furniture contract, which promises to provide significant benefits to our members.
For those seeking office furniture, choosing Procurement Australia as your procurement partner gives you access to our pre-negotiated contract. This means you can take advantage of the best deals available on the market. We have established collaborations with the top office suppliers nationwide, ensuring that you receive the finest furniture is conscientious and cost-effective.