According to IKEA head of sustainability, we have (read here).
“We talk about peak oil. I’d say we’ve hit peak red meat, peak sugar, peak stuff … peak home furnishings.”
Actually, market statistics show peak gadgets too - sales for iPads and iPhones have either stagnated or dropped.
It's about time because, according to scientists, we are now officially in the Antropocene geological period, a period that begins when human activities started to have a significant global impact on Earth's geology and ecosystems.
People don't seem happy with stuff anymore, clearing out their homes, decluttering, and now buying less. I hope it remains that way because I miss the times when we borrowed or shared things. I remember when we shifted into our first home, and we got a lot of secondhand furniture (some still looked brand new). We made good friends in the process.
Have you reached peak stuff? I know I have.
Image: Hannes Desmat
This is interesting, especially when I have found myself wanting less and less stuff (clutter) in my home lately! And, I love fixing up old furniture... even more fun then buying new!
ReplyDeleteCarrie
curlycraftymom.com
What's interesting on the topic of people sharing things, or buying less, is the "swap and shop" sites popping up on sites like Facebook where people can sell the things they no longer want (for their own decluttering purposes) and people in the same area can buy them for cheap. It's a great concept for people to reuse, recycle, etc. I think of them as "one man's trash is another man's treasure" sites. :)
ReplyDeleteStuff isn't made as good as it used to be and that is a huge part of the problem. Today's washer have maybe half the life of one from 30 years ago! Furniture is not built to last decades either.
ReplyDeleteI found it really interesting that a retail giant would be hoping people would buy and consume less!
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