It’s been a busy week! Let’s get stuck in.

Industry News

Collaborations and Partnerships 🤝:

Ericsson and du partner to turn UAE waste streams into circular economy assets. The telecom giant and UAE operator have signed a commercial reseller deal for the “Ericsson Connected Recycling” platform, enabling full traceability, monetisation and marketplace trading of waste materials across multiple sectors. Read more.

GANNI and Vestiaire Collective introduce instant resale model. The Danish fashion brand has partnered with Vestiaire to allow customers to trade in pre-loved pieces for immediate store credit, eliminating the wait for resale. Participants receive a 10% bonus, making circular fashion faster and more rewarding. Read more.

Cyclic Materials expands rare earth recycling partnership in the US. Cyclic Materials has signed a new 10-year deal with Vacuumschmelze to recycle all magnet by-products from a new South Carolina facility, opening in 2025. The agreement strengthens domestic rare-earth recovery and reduces reliance on virgin mining. Read more.

University of Manchester partners with Floreeda to recycle acrylic off-cuts. The University has teamed up with manufacturer Floreeda to repurpose workshop and display-board waste using Floreeda’s REFLO system, which transforms acrylic off-cuts into high-quality sheet material, while educating design students in circular-thinking. Read more.

Company Updates 🔎:

IKEA launches second-hand furniture platform in Poland. The Swedish retailer and circularity pioneer has rolled out “Second-hand IKEA” in Poland, enabling customers to buy and sell pre-owned items priced up to 50% below new, with some listings offered for free. Read more.

TOMRA unveils high-tech system to extract valuable metals from common scrap. The Norwegian firm has developed an advanced sorting machine that identifies and separates different metal alloys from mixed waste streams, enabling recyclers and processors to recover higher-value materials that were previously lost. Read more.

Calvin Klein launches Re-Calvin take-back programme in the US. The fashion brand has introduced a nationwide initiative powered by Trove and Debrand, allowing customers to return clothing, footwear, and accessories from any brand for reuse, recycling, or recovery. Read more.

GoBolt redefines e-commerce logistics with a fully sustainable supply chain. The North American tech firm is expanding its electric vehicle fleet and reverse logistics network to deliver carbon-neutral fulfilment and returns for leading online retailers. The model aims to prove that convenience and sustainability can coexist at scale. Read more.

PepsiCo expands regenerative agriculture agenda in Europe. The food and drink giant has partnered with ag-carbon platform Soil Capital to advance regenerative, restorative and protective farming practices across the UK, France and Belgium as part of its “pep+ Positive Agriculture” strategy. Read more.

Scamp & Dude launches pre-loved resale marketplace. The B-Corp certified womenswear brand has introduced a dedicated platform allowing members of its Charge Your Bolt community to sell their pre-loved items for 110% in store credit and buy second-hand pieces. Read more.

Reusable cup system prevents 20 million single-use plastics from landfill. Australian reuse provider r.World reports that its return-and-wash network for stadiums and event venues has already replaced more than 20 million disposable cups and containers, demonstrating the growing viability of large-scale reuse infrastructure. Read more.

AIM Group launches “Recommerce Intelligence” report with global resale insights. The new service forecasts the recommerce sector to grow at over 10% annually, and highlights this as the fastest-growing segment in retail. The 89-page free report covers markets from fashion and furniture to electronics and phones. Read more.

Regional Updates 🌎️:

Circularity enters the public vocabulary, according to global study. A global survey of more than 16,000 participants across 16 countries found that 57% describe recyclable packaging as “designed for circularity” and 43% associate it with re-usability, signalling that circularity is firmly entering public discourse. Read more.

Von der Leyen positions circular economy as Europe’s competitive edge. In her 2025 State of the Union address, the European Commission President announced plans for a new Circular Economy Act and Industrial Accelerator Act to strengthen resource security and boost investment in recycling and reuse. Read more.

Serial returners drop by 25% across UK retail. New data from ZigZag reveals that habitual returners now account for just 8% of shoppers, down from 12% last year, saving retailers an estimated £1.7 billion in avoided returns. The decline follows tighter policies and the widespread introduction of return fees across major retailers. Read more.

EU directive enforces new rules on textiles and food waste. The EU’s updated directive, now in force, introduces mandatory extended producer responsibility (EPR) for textiles and footwear, and binding food-waste reduction targets for Member States, reshaping how goods are designed, used and disposed of. Read more.

Scientists in Japan find a surprising new circular methodology for rare earths. Scientists have found that a common baker’s yeast strain (S-yeast) can selectively bind and recover rare-earth metals from electronic-waste leachate, offering a lower-temperature, less-chemical-intensive recovery route. Read more.

Scotland launches consultation on draft circular economy strategy. The Scottish Government has opened a consultation on its strategy aimed at boosting reuse, repair and recycling across key sectors such as built environment, textiles, net-zero infrastructure and food. Read more.

Brazil implements reverse logistics system for plastic packaging. The Brazilian government has launched a new nationwide scheme under its National Solid Waste Policy to recover and recycle plastic packaging, setting a target of 32% recycling by 2026 and 50% by 2040, with a 40% reuse goal. Read more.

Investment News

M&A 💰️:

UTOPYA acquires Obsequ to strengthen scope in European electronics spares. Germany-based Obsequ GmbH has been acquired by spare parts wholesaler UTOPYA, bolstering its European footprint in refurbished and spare-parts supply. Read more.

Venture and Growth Capital 📈:

refurbed raises €50 million to accelerate UK expansion. The Vienna-based refurbished electronics marketplace secured €50 million in growth funding to support UK market entry and further develop its AI-driven platform. The profitable company reports 40% year-on-year sales growth. Read more.

NVIDIA invests in battery recycler Redwood Materials. NVIDIA, through its VC arm NVentures, participated in a $350 million Series E round for Redwood Materials, a company accelerating battery recycling and second-life energy-storage deployments. Redwood is using the funds to accelerate its energy storage network. Read more.

Yaga raises €4 million to make second-hand fashion mainstream. Estonian resale platform Yaga has secured €4 million in pre-Series A funding led by Specialist VC and backed by H&M Group. The capital will fuel international expansion across Africa and the Middle East as Yaga positions itself as a global leader in pre-loved fashion. Read more.

Circularity focused plastic projects awarded €18 million in growth funding. Under the Circular Plastics NL initiative, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency has granted over €18 million to projects led by Utrecht University, Morssinkhof Plastics, and others, aimed at scaling recycling, re-use and the circular design of plastics. Read more.

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Have a great one and we’ll meet again on Monday!

Cheers to circularity,

#TeamCircularConnect #ConnectingTheCircularEconomy