Back Market Launches Downgrade Now, Flambant Vieux, Gönn dir ein Downgrade, and Desactulize

Artist Gab Bois to Create Original Capsule Collection From Tech Waste

Back Market Announces the Launch of Phone!

Back Market, the leading marketplace dedicated to verified refurbished technology, today launched a global marketing campaign titled Downgrade Now. The new campaign was unveiled by Chief Marketing Officer, Joy Howard, during a Paris press conference to mark the 10th anniversary of Back Market. The artist, Gab Bois, was on hand to announce that she will be creating original artwork from tech waste as part of the Downgrade Now campaign. 

“With this campaign we are focusing on how people actually use technology — making calls, texting friends, taking photos, listening to music — everything that you don’t need to upgrade to the latest, most expensive devices to do. Once you understand how you interact with tech in the real world, you have the opportunity to ‘downgrade’ to a refurbished version that serves your daily needs for a fraction of the price of new and much less impact on the environment,”

said Howard. 

Every year, there’s a new smartphone, tablet, laptop or watch that promises to be “the best one ever.” It’s faster and cooler than last year’s model—and most importantly—it’s better than the perfectly good one you bought a year ago. This endless cycle of “new” is what contributes to the world’s fastest-growing form of waste: e-waste, and consumers are getting tired of playing this game. Downgrade Now will put the power of choice back in the consumer’s hands, and show them there’s a better way. The campaign will focus on how we use tech in our daily lives, where previous years’ tech is just as good as new, and how consumers can save money and cut down on their footprint by downgrading to older models that fit their needs and do all the things they love. 

To drive home the point, Back Market announced the launch of Phone! at the Paris press conference. Phone! is exactly that—a high-quality, refurbished Apple or Samsung smartphone that does all the things you need your phone to do—calling, texting, swiping, doom scrolling, taking way too many pictures of your dog—without the inflated price tag and carbon footprint that comes from buying “new.” Every Phone! will be curated from Back Market’s high-quality Verified Refurbished smartphones catalog, and are guaranteed to be in excellent condition.

Phone! Is now available for purchase in France for €299, and in the US for $249 and comes with 92% less CO2e, 91% less raw materials, 86% less water and 89% less e-waste. 

The campaign will also highlight the many features we have loved and lost along the way - from headphone jacks to USB ports to home buttons. Big Tech likes to dictate our needs rather than serve them. Downgrade Now wants to help us rediscover what we’ve loved and lost, reliving better days and bringing beloved features back to life. 

The artist Gab Bois is known for revealing the surreal quality of everyday objects and technology. She uses her work to shine a light on the absurdity of design, tech, fashion and culture using humor, intimacy and irony - whether bikinis made from earbuds or ashtrays made from discarded Amazon Alexa devices. For Downgrade Now, Gab Bois will be creating original artwork from discarded and refurbished technology. She teased examples of the collection at the Paris press conference including a belt with a buckle made from a flip phone and nail art made from old Blackberry components. 

Gab Bois will launch a full capsule collection for Back Market on 5 December 2024. Details of the collection, including prices and availability, will be announced closer to the launch date. 

Downgrade Now creative is set to appear in France, Spain, Germany, the UK and the US in high profile cities and outdoor locations across Paris, New York, Madrid. Marseille-Aix, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Nantes, Nice, London, Toulouse and more. 

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About Back Market 

Back Market is the leading global marketplace dedicated to verified refurbished technology. Our mission is to create a world that does more with what we already have by prolonging the lifespan of electronic devices through circularity and repair. Founded in Paris in 2014, the company has grown by double digits year over year and to date over 30 million refurbished devices have been sold on Back Market across 18 markets, avoiding approximately 1.6 billion Kg of carbon emissions.