REIMAGINING RETAIL: THE REMARKABLE JOURNEY OF TURNING WASTE INTO WEALTH

At the beginning of a new, exciting digital age, this is a thoroughgoing startup that’s reinventing retail – and showing that the big sustainability questions can be turned into real business opportunities. The story of (Re)vive, a startup based in New York, inspires and challenges other retailers around the world, proving the transformational potential of sustainability and technology in retail.

THE CRISIS OF RETAIL RETURNS: A JOURNEY TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS

The fashion industry has an annual nightmare. A staggering 9.5 billion pounds of returned merchandise either ends up in a landfill or is incinerated each year, resulting in an environmental crisis and significant losses for retailers. (Re)vive exists as a solution to this dilemma by providing retailers with a sustainable solution for returned goods.

THE JOURNEY OF REVITALIZATION: HOW (RE)VIVE WORKS ITS MAGIC

The journey of an item after (Re)vive takes it in unusual directions, too. The company focuses on refurbishing items that retailers won’t usually recycle – for example, washing and repairing products that have been returned to stock. By using powerful tech to evaluate return items quickly and easily, retailers can track the progress of their products, and use this information to help them cut their ecological footprint.

A SEAMLESS INTEGRATION INTO RETAIL ECOSYSTEMS

Bringing in (Re)vive’s services into the retail workflow means that retailers only have to take whatever returns they cannot sell and drop them off at (Re)vive without having to worry about anything else. They can claim to be environmentally friendly, and they can also get some of that revenue back. Convenience has been a major reason why companies have adopted (Re)vive.

THE TRANSFORMATIVE JOURNEY OF (RE)VIVE: FROM HEMSTER TO HERO

(Re)vive’s evolution from Hemster retail in-store tailoring to what it is today serves as a reminder of the necessity for adaptability and innovation, even in times and places when the world is turned upside down.

THE GROWTH TRAJECTORY: A JOURNEY TO SUCCESS

But as retailers make slow but steady progress to being better stewards of the environment and more efficient in their use of resources, (Re)vive’s story has gained a positive momentum. Turnover grew fifteen-fold last year; the market is ripe and ready for green retail. It could be this is the direction retail is heading towards.

THE BROADER IMPACT: A SUSTAINABLE JOURNEY FORWARD

(Re)vive is not only a novel solution to the retail waste problem, it’s a way to force change in the industry. With the potential to save 150,000 garments from the landfill and help (Re)vive’s clients recapture $23 million in gross merchandise volume, (Re)vive is charting a new course for environmental responsibility and profit in retail.

ENVISIONING A FUTURE OF SUSTAINABLE RETAIL

Its (Re)vive story is particularly important in an age when consumers and other stakeholders are increasingly concerned not only about waste but also sustainability – and illustrates how technology and innovation can make a huge difference for retailers’ bottom lines, as well as for the global fight against waste and environmental sustainability.

EXPLORING THE JOURNEY OF SUSTAINABILITY IN RETAIL

(Re)vive’s story is an important one, not just for what it does, but also for what it represents – the path forward for sustainability endeavours in retail. It shows that, when approached properly, problems of today can become opportunities of tomorrow. As more retailers get their hands dirty, so to speak, we as consumers get to share in the rewards of a brighter, sustainable future, and retailers are given the tools they need to remain competitive and relevant on the increasingly global stage.

And this brings us full circle from a fledgling start-up to a truly sustainable retail success story: (Re)vive.