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There are many reasons you might consider starting a mobile phone recycling business. Here are our top 7 reasons on why we think you should!
The profit margins on buying and selling brand new electronics are notoriously low. By buying and refurbishing used phones, you can potentially double your profit margin versus selling brand new devices. This is because you can often buy wholesale at relatively low prices, or direct from the public. As a result you can often do better selling old phones than new ones.
With the growing of environmental conscientiousness, people are becoming more likely to want to resell their second hand phones. Consumers are also becoming more aware of the value of their old electronic devices. Approximately 1.8 billion mobile phones sold each year, the vast majority of which are replacements for fully functional devices. Because consumers seek to keep up with the trend for newer and faster devices, there has been an explosive growth in the availability of old devices. As a result the trend is only likely to continue as new technologies emerge and replace existing technologies.
One of the often-unseen effects of the production of our electronic goods is the damage done to fragile ecosystems. Specifically, the raw materials for mobile phones are obtained from large scale mining operations, sometimes illegal in nature, that see important ecosystems ravaged and local wildlife displaced. Therefore by becoming part of the circular economy of recycling and refurbishment you can directly help to reduce the need to mine new materials. The Jane Goodall institute has partnered with mobile phone recyclers to reduce the impact of mining on great apes. You can find out more about here amazing work here.
It is not just the production of our mobile phones that cause damage to the environment. Once a phone is discarded it often ends up on a landfill. Mobile phones, along with other electronics, are packed with dozens of toxic and hazardous materials. These include for example heavy metals such as mercury, arsenic, and cerium. Rains leach these dangerous elements into the ground which can then end up in groundwater. Not only are the compounds dangerous to animals, but also to human health.
One of the benefits of starting a mobile recycling business is that it can be done from home. Firstly, you can obtain phones wholesale from resellers, or by your own online store where customers can post their old devices directly to you in exchange for payment based on the value of the device. You can then sell these devices on e-commerce sites such as eBay or Amazon. This means your overheads relating to running the business can be quite low which facilitates entry into the market.
As your business grows you can easily expand your business by investing in a dedicated space to store your stock. You can then take on additional staff and form partnerships with local repair services to allow you to increase the type of stock you are able to successfully refurbish and resell.
When mobile phones are recycled, they are often sold at affordable prices. This allows people in financial difficulty or in underprivileged societies to gain access to recent technology. This can make a massive difference in their ability to compete and contribute meaningfully to their societies. Giving them access to resources and information they would have struggled to obtain can make a big difference in their lives.
Written by Nick Rose
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