When an item breaks do you run out and buy a replacement or try to repair it? This question is the theme of the latest SIRE campaign.
SIRE
SIRE (Stichting Ideële Reclame) is an independent Dutch organisation that raises issues designed to get society thinking about behaviours and actions. It’s an organisation that has been around for fifty years.
Latest Campaign: Repair It
The latest campaign is “WAARDEER HET. REPAREER HET”.
SIRE is highlighting that many of us simply replace a broken item, instead of attempting to repair it. The determining factor for six out of ten Dutch people on whether to replace or fix an item is the monetary value of the item. Half of Dutch people will attempt a reparation if an item costs more than 100 euro.
On average we throw away 18 kilos of electrical equipment a person in the Netherlands, and 15 kilos of textiles.
The SIRE campaign hopes to motivate us to value our belongings more and try and repair rather than throw away items.
Guilty
The campaign has already got me thinking. There’s a skip outside our house right now as we are still doing renovations on our home. There’s a broken vacuum cleaner in there. It’s not particularly old, but it gave up the will to live a few days ago. A replacement should be arriving any time now. Did we try and repair it? No. Why not? Many reasons.
The first challenge is that I need to find someone in the area who fixes vacuum cleaners.
Experience tells me that it generally costs more to repair an item (somebody has to be paid for their work, as well as part costs) than it does to buy a new one. I’m not alone in thinking this – according to SIRE three quarters of us believe this.
Whilst an item is being repaired it’s usually gone for a week or more.
So it’s easier, possibly cheaper, and more convenient to replace rather than repair.
And there’s something not quite right about that.
So What do the Dutch Repair?
According to research undertaken by SIRE:
“Ruim driekwart van de Nederlanders is er namelijk van overtuigd dat het goedkoper is een nieuw product te kopen dan het te repareren. Zo worden kleding, speelgoed, strijkijzers, koffers en koffiezetapparaten het vaakst direct weggegooid als het ‘kapot’ is. Nederlanders zijn zuiniger op hun fiets, laptop, naaimachine en telefoon.” SIRE
It probably won’t come as a surprise that the Dutch are likely to get their bikes, laptops, sewing machines and telephones repaired.
Bikes, of course, are an extension of a Dutch self, and therefore not to be cast into a skip when something malfunctions. If something happens to my bike I know at least three local places I can go to (walking with my bike of course) to get my bike fixed.
The same applies to my phone and laptop.
No idea where my sewing machine would have to go to to be repaired, but as my sewing machine rarely sees the light of day that’s not a worry I have. And therein I see one of the issues. I have a sewing machine and could repair clothes, instead of throwing them out at the first sign of wear and tear. But I lack the skills. That’s something I can work with.
A handy tip is to think about how easy a product is to repair at the time of buying it.
Where to Repair
Want to find out if your item can be easily repaired before you throw it away? Visit: https://www.repareerhet.nl
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