Irresistible Circular Business
How do you scale refurbishment through existing dealer networks?
In this episode, Rolf Keller, Head of Circularity, explains how Vitra built its circular model around buying back, refurbishing, and reselling furniture through its dealers, saving 60 to 90% CO2 compared to new products.
Co-hosted by Heiko Tullney, Executive Director at Indeed Innovation, this conversation focuses on:
• The role of modular design and why backward compatibility across product generations matters
• How Vitra structured dealer access to circular stock, including list pricing, visibility into inventory, and revenue sharing
• The criteria behind Vitra's buyback decisions, from product age and condition to logistics and location
The episode also covers how replacing seat covers solves stock mismatches in contract orders and how Vitra embeds circularity requirements into new product development.
This is the first episode in the series Irresistible Circular Businesses, sponsored by Indeed Innovation, the global design and innovation firm pioneering the circular economy. The series showcases business practices that deliver irresistible commercial and circular results, with examples from different industries across different R-strategies.
Rolf Keller, Head of Circularity at Vitra
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellerrolf/
Heiko Tullney, Executive Director at Indeed Innovation
https://www.linkedin.com/in/heiko-tullney/
Patrick Hypscher, Circular Business Strategist, PaaS Expert
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hypscher/
04:52 Explaining Vitra Circle for Contract
06:23 The Three Pillars of the Business Model
08:39 Commercial Structure: Costs and Revenue Streams
10:03 How Product Design Enables the Business Model
11:51 Modular Design for Repair and Reuse
14:12 Evolution of Circularity: Classics vs. Modern Design
16:44 Embedding Circularity in Development Processes
17:46 The Role of Retailers and Partners in the System
20:50 Addressing Cannibalization and Market Potential
23:46 Service Business and Partner Incentives
25:32 The Logistics of Buy-Back and Take-Back
28:06 Partner Education and Criteria for Success
29:35 Buy-Back Models: 90% are Paid Transactions
32:17 B2B Dynamics vs. B2C (eBay/Resale)
35:36 Solving Stock Mismatches through Re-upholstery
38:00 Environmental Proof and CO2 Savings
39:43 Why Circularity is Irresistible for Vitra
41:22 Expert Reflection: A Blueprint for Success
42:59 Overcoming the Barrier of Modularity
43:51 Commercial Success and De-risking the Future
Vitra is a Swiss, family-owned furniture and home furnishings company that collaborates with leading designers to create products and concepts for contemporary home, office, and public environments. Its portfolio combines classic designs with new furniture and office solutions that are developed in Switzerland and used worldwide.
Within this broader design-driven profile, Vitra increasingly connects its long-standing focus on durable, high-quality furniture with circular-economy initiatives such as refurbishment and second-life programs like Circle for Contract, which return used furniture to professional use instead of disposing of it. These activities sit alongside the company’s emphasis on long-term relationships, sustainable growth, and products whose longevity supports lower resource use over their life cycle.
Vitra Circle for Contract https://contract.vitracircle.com/
ReCommerce Playbook https://www.indeed-innovation.com/the-recommerce-playbook-from-returns-to-revenue/
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