·
Planned Obsolescence: A Model for Economic Success and Environmental Failure
Planned obsolescence is a highly controversial and debated business strategy, whereby products are deliberately designed with a finite and often restricted lifespan, pushing consumers to purchase replacements or newer models. This concept essentially revolves around the premeditated idea that after a certain period or amount of use, a product will become obsolete, dysfunctional, or unfashionable.…
·
Why Most Subscription Services Fail and How to Make Yours Last
The idea of selling products as a service is booming. Instead of a one-time sale, companies want ongoing relationships with customers for predictable, recurring revenue. Think of Rolls-Royce charging for “hours of power” from its jet engines, not the engines themselves. However, the reality is harsh: most subscription services fail, often within the first year.…
·
Product-as-a-Service: A Key Component for Achieving a Circular Economy
Product-as-a-Service (PaaS) represents a transformative business model that shifts focus from product ownership to fulfilling customer needs through servitization. It combines physical products and services, paving the way for closer customer relationships, extended company responsibility throughout the product lifecycle, and fostered sustainability through more efficient use of material and energy. This model, aligning closely with the circular…
·
Extended warranty as alternative to PaaS?
On this blog we’ve dedicated multiple articles explaining why Product-as-a-Service (PaaS) is an important piece of the circular puzzle. From detailing the environmental benefits to declaring it a sustainable solution. The most important reason why a PaaS model could work is that it forces producers and vendors to focus on delivering long-term continuous value for…
·
Commown offers electronics as a service – how their cooperative model benefits Product-as-a-Service
Full disclosure: Authors Yana Mechielsen and Robin Angelé both work at Commown “The cooperative for sustainable electronics”. The electronics industry generates a huge amount of negative externalities, from the mines to the products’ end-of-life. According to UNICEF, about 40,000 children work up to 12 hours a day in mines in southern DRC. Mining the valuable…
·
Why Furniture as a Service Works Today
People no longer want to own things – including furniture. Furniture as a Service offers an alternative.
·
The environmental benefits of Product-as-a-Service
Product-as-a-Service (PaaS) can provide users a flexible and convenient way to use products and provide producers and retail outfits a way to create recurring revenue. When properly instituted, this business model could prove to have significant environmental benefits. It could help the global drive towards more sustainable and environmentally friendly business practices. Use only when…
·
Riversimple: Starting with a Blank Canvas
For a long time, profit maximization has remained the ethos of the automotive industry. The factory mindset of ‘the more products you sell, the more money you make’ leaves little room to reflect on the environmental or social impact of the products sold. Riversimple, the world’s only independent hydrogen car startup, aims to break this…
·
PaaS Circular Economy Fueled by Millennials
The PaaS industry and the circular economy are being driven by millennials. They have been restructuring and disrupting long established industries to mold them into their unique lifestyle.
·
Circular Economy from a Linear Economy
The shift from a linear to a circular economy is not a just a passing trend but a necessity. For many decades, we have been living a linear lifestyle, wherein raw materials are used to create a product, and after its use, waste such as broken appliances or packaging are disposed of. Most of our…