Introducing .Rent - a circular initiative in Stockholm

As part of our vision to be the first circular tech brand we are now piloting a rental program in Stockholm. We build products to last a lifetime with the kind of material you find in modern architecture. This means that our products are also perfect to refurbish and circulate to a new home. With the rent program the products make quick stop in our warehouse to be thoroughly cleaned between each new customer. And as a rental customer you also benefit from always having the latest wireless module technology updates and the flexibility to scale up or down your sound stage as your living conditions changes.

We launch this service on #circularmonday because we believe the future is in between the two poles of “Buy nothing day” and the shopping hysteria of Black Friday. When it comes to sound experiences in your home we want to create a way so you can consume as much as you ever want but in a way so it doesn’t require new resources being dug up and burned in the hull of the small fragile blue-orb-spaceship we are all dependent on.

Q&A with our founder Martin

How did the idea for the .Rent pilot start and why are you launching this initiative?
- We crowdfunded our first three products and that created a unique and direct relationship with our customers and community. We see .Rent and circular services as a continuation of the promise of timeless, modular electronics. As producers can not just bend words to make things seem circular. We need to, in the clearest possible way, show that these are products made for many circulations and that we stop digging things out of the earth. .Rent might seem like a small thing but for us it's a total shift in perspective. It’s an agreement that this is a partnership. That we only have one planet and that we need to build things that last.

Why should I rent a speaker instead of buying?
- The first benefit is a lower monthly cost and the flexibility to have sound that scale up and down to fit the moment you are in. We hope this freedom releases some of the burdens of ownership and generates more sparks of joy in your life. The second benefit from renting from us is that we support .Rent customers with the latest wireless modules so that the system will always stay updated with the best technology.

How can a rented speaker decrease the CO2 footprint?
- A circular economy holds the promise to break the linear take-make-waste consumption system. A circular economy is based on three principles, all driven by design:

1. eliminate waste and pollution
2. circulate products & materials
3. regenerate nature

We see circular services mainly addressing the first two principles. In a circular system, materials stay in use. The way this reduces the carbon footprint is that the large part of the environmental footprints comes from extracting, refining and manufacturing of the materials in the speaker. The main challenge is then to find zero carbon transportation so that each circulation is offsetting a new production without adding more carbon to the equation.

How much electronics waste is there every year?
- Electronics waste is the fastest growing domestic waste stream globally. It’s understandable that almost everyone wants a smart phone but the average use of them is now only 24 months. Europeans throw away over 15kg (33 pounds) of e-waste per person every year. The global total is over 50 million metric tonnes and growing.

What is the next steps in Transparents circular journey?
- We are launching this .rent service on #circularmonday because of a belief that the future is in between the two poles of “Buy nothing day” and the shopping hysteria of Black Friday. When it comes to sound experiences in your home Transparent want to create a way so you can consume as much as you ever want but in a way so it doesn’t require new resources being dug up and burned in the thin hull of the small fragile blue-orb-spaceship we are all dependent on. Helping customers to reuse our products is key to our strategy to become 100% circular. But as a company we are also working really hard on our end of the circle to develop ways to work with not only renewable materials but recycled materials.

What speaker is your favourite and why?
- I dance bachata (or whatever she wants) together with my 3 year old daughter when cooking food while listening to the small white speaker in the kitchen so those products definitely gave me the most smiles this year.