It was with the aim of addressing the ‘throwaway society’ that Philip Brodd, a product developer at Amazon Sweden, launched his pet project, the Fix It Store. The idea was born when he was wandering around in old shoes and realised that Amazon’s wide range of repair kits was a much better solution than discarding his shoes and buying new ones.
“Wear and tear is normal, but throwing away nearly functioning items shouldn't be,” Philip believes.
Despite the high profile of reuse, second-hand, and repairs in recent years, the impact on the general population seems to have been somewhat limited. A survey from YouGov shows that barely a quarter of Swedes often repair or renovate worn products, instead of throwing them away and buying new ones. This is despite inflation, decreasing purchasing power, and the strained economic situation.
“I expected the economy to promote a certain resourcefulness and problem-solving ability, but the numbers were not at all as promising as one had hoped for,” Philip says.
Of the just over 1,000 respondents to the survey, half stated that they only repair and renovate products occasionally, while 24% said they rarely or never do it. The two most common reasons for this were lack of knowledge (57%), and the absence of the right tools (43%). There’s will, but lack of knowledge, which was what gave rise to Philip's idea.
“Our range of repair kits can help others just like they helped me, which is why I wanted to gather all repair kits at good prices, along with helpful information. I am so incredibly happy that the store is now being launched, so that we can offer both useful tools and crucial knowledge to encourage people to fix what they already have,” continues Philip.
The Fix It Store's mission aligns with our efforts to help customers keep their products in-use for longer. With Sweden as the pilot country, followed by Mexico and Australia, the Fix It Store aims to become a resource for customers that want to be part of a circular economy.
We’re committed to and invested in sustainability because it’s a win all around—it’s good for the planet, for business, for our customers, and for our communities. We’re using our size and scale to make a difference and it’s why we co-founded The Climate Pledge, becoming the first signatory and setting a goal to meet the Paris Agreement 10 years early and becoming net-zero carbon by 2040. Climate change is a serious problem, and action is needed now more than ever.
