Our very own Group Sustainability & ESG Director at Currys, Moira Thomas, tells us about a series of partnerships that have helped Currys grow the impact of our circular initiatives.
As the UK’s leading omnichannel tech retailer, we’re on a mission to give technology a longer life. We’re acutely aware that electronic waste is one of the world’s fastest growing waste streams and we believe we are uniquely placed to change the nation’s relationship with tech.
Collaboration is key to this, and so, we’ve recently announced a series of partnerships with other organisations as part of this mission.
One example is our partnership with Cancer Research UK to help responsibly recycle any unsellable donated tech from its UK charity shops. As part of this, the charity can drop off any unwanted items, free of charge, at Currys' delivery depots across the country. From there, they are taken to our central sorting facility in Newark to be assessed, then either refurbished, repaired, have their parts harvested or be responsibly recycled. They are the second charity to partner with us, the first being the British Heart Foundation.
In a similar vein, we recently partnered with Deloitte to support their ‘Recycle for Good’ initiative - a commitment to reduce e-waste, promote the responsible disposal of old electronics and drive digital inclusion. Through the initiative, Deloitte's 25,000 UK staff are empowered to recycle their old tech and electricals at Currys stores, receiving at least a £5 Currys Cash for Trash voucher, regardless of where the tech was originally purchased.
Separately, earlier this year, we started to donate £1 of every sale of refurbished tech to our charity partner, the Digital Poverty Alliance, encouraging our customers to buy refurbished tech whilst helping raise funds for an important cause.
And that’s not all. Repair is a huge part of our mission to extend the life of tech, and this year, we announced our partnership with Microsoft to become the first ever Xbox Authorised Service Provider (ASP) in the UK&I. This allows players to have their consoles repaired at Currys, no matter where the console was purchased.
We are in a prime position to make a difference, and forging ahead on our mission to give technology a longer life.