Robert Boyer
Forskningsledare
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Circularity is common sense: The case of Relevator
Relevator is a Swedish business that sells warehouse automation machinery in countries around the world. 100% of their product is recovered from existing warehouses. To Relevator’s founders, circularity was “common sense”.
Transitioning to a circular economy is about finding value all around us: in the materials, products, and resources that are already in circulation. Rather than mining resources from holes in the earth’s crust and discarding wastes back into landfills, the ocean, or the atmosphere, the circular economy finds ways to “mine” value and extend the life of stuff that has already been in use.
As consumers, we are most familiar with circular end-products like second-hand clothing, refurbished electronics, and carsharing, but there is an underappreciated potential for business-to-business (B2B) circular business models operating quietly to keep the machinery of businesses in operation as long as possible.
Below, RISE interviews Naomi Fürst, Chief Marketing Officer of Relevator, a Swedish company that dismantles, transports, and re-installs machinery like vertical carousels and vertical lift modules. These machines ensure smooth logistics inside warehouses, moving many of the products in our everyday lives. Relevator’s business is two-sided, serving both companies looking to sell their existing warehouse machinery and customers interested in procuring the same machinery. By providing the logistics to connect supply to demand, Relevator reveals how circularity was initially a matter of common sense but has become an attractive selling point to customers.
How did Relevator get started?
The idea for Relevator grew out of hands-on experience in the logistics industry. Founders Niklas Nygren (CEO) and Mats Åberg (Sales Manager) realized that used automated storage machines were being sold, but often in an unprofessional and fragmented way. It was clear that there was value in the equipment that wasn’t being captured.
So they decided to take a holistic approach. Instead of merely brokering individual machines, they built a service that covers the entire process—from dismantling and on-site handling (of existing machines) to sales and installation (of the same machines), to what is now an international customer base. Today, Relevator is completely unique in the market in being able to offer customers these services.
Once they started working out in warehouse operations, it also became clear that automated storage machines were only one part of a larger ecosystem. Many other types of equipment could be reused and sold on, which led to the offering being expanded to additional product categories within warehouse automation.
Was circularity a driving force from the beginning?
Reuse has always been a natural part of Relevator’s business model—it has been a form of common sense, but it wasn’t always an explicit part of our business.
After about two years, however, something began to change. Reuse became an increasingly attractive selling point. That’s when Relevator began working more actively with circularity. Among other things, the company is now seriously looking at developing better documentation that customers can use in their own sustainability reporting. Even if circularity wasn’t in the spotlight from the beginning, it has always been present as a clear common thread in the business.
What market challenges do you face?
Interest in reuse is strong, but documentation is often lacking in the secondary market. Manufacturing companies control the entire production chain and can therefore deliver more comprehensive technical and environmental documentation. In the reuse segment, there is a need to develop this in order to meet customer requirements.
What needs do you meet for your sellers (of used warehouse equipment)?
Many sellers contact us in connection with relocations, reorganizations, or closures. They are often under significant time pressure and need to clear out premises. In those situations, the focus has traditionally been on solving the logistics—on getting out and moving fast— not on capturing the value of the equipment. As a result, perfectly functional warehouse automation equipment has often been scrapped.
When Relevator enters the conversation, many people feel relieved. We can take responsibility for the entire process while also creating an opportunity to reuse the equipment in a professional way.
At the same time, many companies are not aware that this solution exists. They first turn to their usual channels without getting the right response, and they don’t know that there is a specialized re-seller with international buyers.
Relevator’s mission is to make reuse a simple, safe, and commercially viable option.
Relevator is collaborating with RISE in the Vinnova-funded project NETRACCI (NetZero and Circular Transition in Construction and Interior) coordinated by Matters Group.
