Last week, elbow-deep in a glitching coffee machine and muttering things my mother wouldn’t approve of, I had a familiar thought: what if the default wasn’t “buy new”, but “make it last”?
This isn’t just wishful thinking from a woman who still dreams about her granny’s indestructible tights – the tide really is turning.
From big retailers embracing resale to tech that’s built to be fixed, and lawmakers finally taking a stand, longevity is stepping out of the niche and into the mainstream. As I argue in A Life Less Throwaway, planned obsolescence isn’t a tinfoil-hat theory – it’s real, it’s costly, and we can outsmart it.
This Week’s Highlights
✓ M&S launches a dedicated resale platform on eBay – with repairs baked in
✓ Framework’s modular laptop shows cutting-edge can be repairable
✓ Québec bans planned obsolescence from October (sacré bleu!)
✓ Circularity is scaling: in Canada, repair and reuse avoided 1.6m tonnes of CO₂
M&S x eBay: Resale, but actually useful
Marks & Spencer has launched a resale shop on eBay, backed by repairs via Reskinned. Translation: fewer perfectly good clothes skulking in our wardrobes; more being cleaned, mended and rehomed. As someone who bangs on about “mindful curation” – surrounding yourself with fewer, better things – I’m delighted to see a major retailer normalising repair and rewear at scale. In my book, I make the case for longevity as a sanity-saver: fewer shoddy bits to let you down, more headspace for, you know, life.
There’s a clever nudge too – vouchers for trade-ins and a cut to charity. That’s the kind of incentive structure that makes doing the right thing also feel like a bargain. If we keep rewarding durability with our wallets, companies will follow. I literally wrote the campaign playbook for this (#MakeItLast): ask brands how long stuff should last, demand spares, and celebrate the ones who step up.
Source: The Industry Fashion – 27 Aug 2025
Framework: Tech that grows up, not throws up
Framework’s latest models prove a laptop can be both high-performance and properly fixable. Nearly every part is replaceable or upgradable, so when the battery ages (because they all do), you don’t have to chuck the entire machine. This is the antidote to the “sealed-shut, built-to-bin” trend I warn about – the sneaky design choices that make repairs hard or uneconomic. If a washer’s bearings fail and you’re told to replace the whole drum… that’s not innovation, that’s inconvenience dressed as progress. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
In A Life Less Throwaway I call out this behaviour – from phones with unreplaceable batteries to sealed-appliance designs – and advocate for modularity (think Fairphone) and long-term spares. It’s how we turn gadgets from sprinters into marathoners.
Source: WebProNews – 18 Sep 2025
Québec bans planned obsolescence. Your move, world.
From 5 October 2025, Québec outlaws planned obsolescence, requiring durability, repairability, access to spares and clear technical info – with penalties for non-compliance. This mirrors what I argue for in my chapter on obsolescence: make “built-to-break” illegal, with real consequences, not just sternly worded press releases. France already did this, with fines and even jail time on the table – a precedent I said should go global. :contentReference[oaicite:5]{index=5}
Why it matters: when a big market raises the bar, manufacturers rarely make a “good” version for one region and a flimsy one for everyone else. They shift the standard worldwide. And that means better products on your street, not just in law textbooks. :contentReference[oaicite:6]{index=6}
Source: The Canadian Press News – 21 Sep 2025
Why this all hits home
Longevity isn’t about being a joyless monk with one spoon and a folding chair. It’s about designing your life – and your things – to support you for years. In my book I call it “mindful curation”: choose fewer, better-made objects that pull their weight, reflect your values and don’t collapse like a flan in a cupboard. Result: less clutter, less stress, and more money over time because you’re not rebuying the same nonsense. :contentReference[oaicite:7]{index=7}
Also, let’s be clear: psychological obsolescence is a marketing trick. We’re nudged to feel bored with perfectly good stuff so we’ll upgrade for the sake of a new bevel or blush-toned finish. As I document (hello, lightbulb cartel), this isn’t new – companies literally conspired to make bulbs die faster. We can spot it, resist it, and ask a better question: “Will this last, and can I fix it?” :contentReference[oaicite:8]{index=8}
Quick Wins & FAQs
Q: How can I support circularity as a customer without moving to a yurt?
Ask three questions before you buy: How long should it last? Are spares available? Who’ll fix it? Then favour brands that publish lifespan expectations, offer parts for years and share repair info. And keep your local repair café on speed dial – fixing isn’t niche; it’s normal. :contentReference[oaicite:9]{index=9}
Q: Aren’t durable products always pricier?
Sometimes upfront, yes – but cheaper across their working life. In the book I walk through how “buy once” beats “buy thrice” on money, time and sanity. If an item does a simple task (kettle, toaster) there’s no excuse for it not lasting decades with serviceable parts. Vote for that with your wallet and reviews. :contentReference[oaicite:10]{index=10}
Q: What laws actually change?
The minute markets require durability and repairability, engineers are empowered to build for longevity instead of cutting corners to hit a marketing price point – a practice I call “quality stripping”. The result: fewer hidden weak links, more products designed to be opened and fixed. Keep pushing for these standards where you live.
Your next tiny rebellion
- Be annoying (politely): ask brands about lifespan, spares and repair. Public questions move mountains.
- Reward the good ones: buy durable, fixable designs – and tell people why. Reviews change behaviour.
- Back the #MakeItLast mindset: support policies that criminalise “built to break” and normalise repair.
- Skill up (lightly): learn basic care and repair – or befriend a fixer. It’s cheaper than one “new-new” habit.
The threads are coming together – retailers trialling repair and resale, innovators building modular products, and legislators drawing lines in the sand. We’re not at a fully circular economy yet, but we’re done with the flimsy, throwaway default. As I wrote when I first started Buy Me Once, life gets calmer when your things are trustworthy. Let’s make that the norm – and keep the caffeinated-kitten chaos for our inboxes.
x Tara
