Becoming eco-friendly and staying on top of your carbon footprint is not only at the forefront of brand’s minds, but also now of the consumer’s too.
Online auction marketplace, The Saleroom, has championed the benefits of buying pre-owned to help consumers solve this.
A couple of years ago, The Saleroom commissioned a survey that found that while 82% of people consider sustainability in some way when making a purchase, almost half didn’t realise just how much greener it is to buy an item second-hand instead of new.
In recognising that there was work to be done, The Saleroom was keen to raise awareness of just how green it is to buy pre-owned.
The business started working with carbon metrics expert Mike Berners-Lee and his team at Small World Consulting in 2021 to investigate just how much carbon emissions are saved by buying second-hand.
Commenting on just what it found, Richard Lewis, Chief Operating Officer of Auction Technology Group, which operates online auction marketplace The Saleroom, explained: “Our research found that when someone purchases a new mechanical wristwatch, high manufacturing emissions mean that they could be responsible for approximately 0.8 tonnes of CO2e in greenhouse gas emissions. However, when someone chooses to buy pre-owned, there are no manufacturing emissions.”
Adding: “Therefore, if you buy pre-owned, you could save around 0.8 tonnes of CO2e. Considering that the carbon footprint of the average person in the UK is 13 tonnes CO2e, you could be offsetting 6% of your annual carbon emissions just by choosing to buy a pre-owned watch instead of a new one.”
He concluded: “Furthermore, if well looked after, mechanical watches can last upwards of 60 years. A standard mechanical service and repair will have a footprint of around 12 kg CO2e – much lower than buying a new one. So, in terms of what manufacturers can do to reduce their footprint and improve their contribution to a more circular economy, the answer is to make watches that are as easy and carbon effective to repair as possible – so that they last a lifetime.”
