What if things were built to last?

From planned replacement to durability, repair, upgrade and reuse.

Something breaks.
We throw it away.
Something slows down.
We replace it.
The battery dies.
Buy another one.
The software stops updating.
Buy another one.
A tiny component fails inside a large appliance.
Replace the appliance.
A zipper breaks.
Replace the jacket.
A screen cracks.
Replace the phone.

We have normalized throwing away things that still contain enormous value.

And then we extract more resources to manufacture their replacements.

What do we have now?

An economy built largely around:

Take.
Make.
Sell.
Replace.
Repeat.

The faster products move through the system, the more opportunities there are to sell another one.

That doesn’t mean every manufacturer secretly designs products to fail.

But the economic system often rewards:

Short product cycles.
Difficult repairs.
Proprietary components.
Sealed batteries.
Unavailable spare parts.
Software expiration.
Fashion changes.
Expensive service.
Products cheaper to replace than repair.

Whether the obsolescence is deliberate or simply built into the business model, the result can be the same:

More stuff.
More extraction.
More waste.

Look at electronics

The world generated a record 62 million tonnes of electronic waste in 2022.
Only 22.3% was documented as properly collected and recycled.
At current trends, global e-waste could reach 82 million tonnes by 2030.

And buried inside that discarded equipment are enormous quantities of:

Copper.
Gold.
Silver.
Lithium.
Cobalt.
Rare earth materials.
Glass.
Plastics.
Steel.
Components that required energy, water, labor and extraction to produce.
The ITU estimated that about $62 billion worth of recoverable natural resources went unaccounted for in e-waste in 2022 alone.

We are mining the planet while throwing away the materials we already mined.

That is not efficiency.

Why do we still have this system?

Because replacement became easier than repair.
For consumers:
A new product arrives tomorrow.
A repair may take weeks.

For manufacturers:

Selling another product can generate more revenue than helping the existing one survive.

For retailers:

New inventory moves the economy.

For designers:

Thin, sealed and integrated products can be easier to manufacture than modular ones.

For software companies:

New hardware creates new ecosystems and revenue opportunities.

For communities:

Repair shops, local manufacturing skills and spare-parts networks have often disappeared.

And we changed the culture

Once upon a time:
People repaired shoes.
Reupholstered furniture.
Fixed appliances.
Mended clothing.
Rebuilt machinery.
Passed products between generations.

Today we increasingly ask: How old is it?

Instead of: Does it still work?

Now flip the script

What if the first design question wasn’t “How do we sell another one?”

But “How long can we make this one useful?”

From built-in obsolescence

To built-in longevity.

Design products that can be:

Maintained.
Opened.
Repaired.
Upgraded.
Modified.
Reused.
Resold.
Remanufactured.
Disassembled.
Recycled.

And eventually transformed into something useful again.

The real product isn’t the object

It is the function.

We don’t necessarily want a washing machine.

We want clean clothes.

We don’t want a drill.

We want a hole.

We don’t necessarily want a new laptop.

We want a working computer.

We don’t want another refrigerator.

We want food kept cold.

That changes the incentive.

If manufacturers profit from providing long-term performance instead of repeated replacement:

Durability becomes good business.

What does built to last look like?

A battery you can replace.
A screen you can change.
Standard screws.
Available parts.
Repair manuals.
Long software support.
Upgradeable processors and memory.
Replaceable motors.
Universal components.
Durable fabrics.
Products designed for disassembly.
Extended warranties.
Repair services.
Trade-in programs.
Refurbishment.
Resale.
Local repair businesses.

And it is already happening

Europe — the right to repair becomes law

Beginning July 31, 2026, EU rules require member states to apply new right-to-repair protections.

For covered products such as washing machines, vacuum cleaners, smartphones and tablets, consumers can request repair from manufacturers when products are technically repairable.

Manufacturers must also provide repair information and access to spare parts at reasonable prices.

When consumers choose repair instead of replacement during the legal guarantee period, that guarantee can be extended by at least another year.

The flip:

Don’t make repair an act of rebellion.

Make repair a normal consumer right.

France — put durability on the price tag

France took another important step.

In 2025 it began replacing its repairability score with a broader durability index for televisions and washing machines.
The score evaluates characteristics connected to the expected useful life of products and gives shoppers information before they buy.
Imagine applying that everywhere.

Next to the price:

$599.

And beside it:

Expected durability: 9/10.
Repairability: 9/10.
Parts available: 10 years.

Now manufacturers compete differently.

Not only:

Who can make it cheapest?

But:

Who can make it last?

Fairphone — what if your phone were designed to be opened?

The Fairphone Gen. 6 shows how different electronics can look.

It includes 12 user-replaceable parts, including its battery, display and USB-C port.
Fairphone guarantees software support through at least 2033 and offers up to a five-year warranty.
You don’t need a new phone because one small component fails.
Replace the component.
Keep the phone.

The flip:

Don’t replace the device.

Replace the part.

Framework — the laptop that can change with you

Framework builds computers around another simple idea:

Your computer should be yours.

Framework laptops are designed so components can be repaired, replaced and upgraded individually.
Replacement parts are sold directly.
Repair guides are provided.
A screwdriver comes with the laptop.
Even older internal mainboards can be repurposed as standalone computers rather than automatically becoming waste.
Its 2026 Framework Laptop 13 Pro continued that strategy while remaining repairable and upgradeable.

The flip:

Need more performance?

Upgrade the computer.

Not necessarily:

Throw away the computer.

Patagonia — repair becomes part of the product

Patagonia’s Worn Wear program has helped keep more than 583,000 items out of landfills through repair and continued use.

Customers can:
Repair clothing.
Use DIY repair guides.
Send garments for professional repair.
Trade in used products.
Purchase used gear.
Recycle products that can no longer reasonably be repaired.

The flip:

The sale isn’t necessarily the end of the company’s responsibility.
It can be the beginning of a long relationship with the product.

Vienna — pay people to repair instead of replace

Vienna has taken another approach:

Make repair economically attractive.
Its Repair Voucher subsidizes 50% of qualifying repair costs, up to €100.
The program was renewed again in April 2026, with city funding continuing through 2027.

In 2025 alone, participating businesses completed more than 8,300 subsidized repairs, avoiding an estimated 330 tonnes of material use compared with buying replacements.

Think about that.

Instead of subsidizing consumption:

Subsidize maintenance.

And at the same time:
Support local technicians.
Preserve skills.
Keep money circulating locally.
Reduce extraction.
Save households money.

California — make parts available

California’s Right to Repair Act requires manufacturers of covered electronics and appliances to make repair documentation, parts and tools available to consumers and repair businesses.
For products with a wholesale price of $100 or more, those materials generally must remain available for at least seven years after the final manufacturing date of the model.

The flip:

If you’re allowed to buy it:

You should be able to fix it.

This is bigger than repair

Repair is what happens after something breaks.

The real opportunity starts before the product exists.

Design it differently.

Design for 20 years.

Not two.

Ask:

Can the battery be replaced?
Can the motor be rebuilt?
Can the fabric be repaired?
Can software continue functioning?
Can parts be manufactured locally?
Can upgrades be installed?
Can another person use it?
Can it be disassembled?
Can materials be recovered?

How do we get what we want?

1. Require a durability score

Every major consumer product should tell us:

Expected lifespan.
Warranty length.
Repairability.
Spare-parts availability.
Software-support period.
Estimated repair cost.
Recycled content.
End-of-life options.

Make durability visible before purchase.

2. Create a right to repair

Consumers and independent repair businesses need access to:

Parts.
Tools.
Diagnostics.
Manuals.
Software.
Without unreasonable restrictions.

3. Make the warranty mean something

A one-year warranty sends one message.
A ten-year warranty sends another.

If a company knows it must support a product longer, it has a reason to build it better.

4. Make products modular

Why replace a refrigerator because one circuit board failed?
Why replace a laptop because memory cannot be upgraded?
Why replace a phone because its battery has degraded?

Replace the component.

Not the product.

5. Rebuild the local repair economy

Every community needs:

Repair technicians.
Tool libraries.
Repair cafés.
Electronics workshops.
Sewing and textile repair.
Furniture restoration.
Appliance repair.
Bike repair.
Remanufacturing.
Parts fabrication.

Repair creates local jobs that cannot easily be shipped away.

6. Make repair cheaper than replacement

Use:

Repair vouchers.
Tax incentives.
Reduced sales taxes on repair.
Extended producer responsibility.
Long warranties.
Public procurement.
Community repair funds.

If replacing something costs $200 and repairing it costs $300:

We designed the economics backwards.

7. Use government purchasing power

Schools.
Cities.
Hospitals.
Universities.
Government agencies.
Collectively buy enormous quantities of equipment.

Require:

Repairability.
Long warranties.
Replacement parts.
Upgradeable designs.
Take-back programs.
Durability.

Suddenly the market changes.

8. Move from ownership to service where it makes sense

Manufacturers could increasingly sell:

Cooling.
Lighting.
Mobility.
Laundry.
Computing.
Equipment performance.
Rather than simply selling objects.

If the manufacturer remains responsible for the equipment:

It has a financial reason to make it last.

What stands in the way?

“New is cheaper.”

Sometimes.
Because extraction and disposal costs are often externalized.

Flip it: Make repair economically competitive through pricing, taxes, incentives and producer responsibility.

“People want the latest thing.”

Some do.

But millions of people also want something that simply works.
Flip it: Make durability prestigious.

Imagine advertising:

Still working after 20 years.

That should be a selling point.

“Technology changes too fast.”

Sometimes the technology changes.
Sometimes only one component does.

Flip it: Separate the components that evolve quickly from those that can last decades.

Upgrade the intelligence.
Keep the machine.

“Repair is inconvenient.”

Often it is.

Flip it: Build repair into retail.

Drop it off where you bought it.
Offer temporary replacements.
Create neighborhood repair hubs.
Provide same-day common repairs.
Make fixing something easier than replacing it.

“Long-lasting products hurt business.”

Only if the business model depends entirely on selling replacements.

But companies can make money through:

Maintenance.
Repair.
Upgrades.
Parts.
Resale.
Refurbishment.
Service contracts.
Leasing.
Remanufacturing.
Long-term customer relationships.

We don’t need less business.

We need better business.

The cultural flip

We have been trained to admire:

New.

What if we admired:

Still working?

A 30-year-old appliance.
A repaired jacket.
A refurbished laptop.
A restored chair.
An upgraded machine.
A product passed between generations.
Those shouldn’t represent poverty.

They can represent intelligence.

The most sustainable product may be the one you already own

Before recycling:

Repair it.

Before replacing:

Upgrade it.

Before discarding:

Sell it.

Share it.

Donate it.

Remanufacture it.

And only when its useful life is truly finished:

Recover the materials.

Flip the script

The old economy says:

Sell more products.

The new economy says:

Create more value.

The old economy says:

New and improved.

The new economy asks:

Why did the old one need replacing?

The old economy says:

Warranty expired.

The new economy says:

Let’s fix it.

The old economy says:

Obsolete.

The new economy asks:

Can it be upgraded?

The old economy says:

Throw it away.

The new economy says:

There is no away.

And this connects to everything

Products that last longer require:

Less mining.
Less manufacturing.
Less shipping.
Less packaging.
Less energy.
Less waste.
And potentially create:
More local employment.
More repair businesses.
More resilience.
More household savings.
More ownership.
More useful products.

The big question

What would happen if every product had to compete not only on price — but on how long it could remain useful?

Imagine the label:

Built for 20 years.
Repairable locally.
Parts guaranteed.
Software supported.
Fully upgradeable.
Materials recoverable.

Suddenly durability becomes innovation.

Built to last isn’t going backwards.

It may be the next great technological advance.

Better engineering.
Better materials.
Modularity.
Local repair.
Open information.
Longer warranties.
Upgradeable technology.
Circular production.
Products that evolve rather than expire.

Flip the script.

Buy less.
Buy better.
Keep it longer.
Fix what breaks.
Upgrade what changes.
Share what you don’t need.
Recover what can’t be saved.

From built-in obsolescence

To built-in possibility.

Less extraction.
Less waste.
More value.
More local work.
More life from everything we already have.

Less talking. More repairing.

What if the mark of innovation wasn’t how quickly we replace something—but how long we can keep making it better?

The big Question:

What would happen if every product had to compete not only on price — but on how long it could remain useful?

Imagine the label:

Built for the long run
Repairable locally
Parts guaranteed
Software Supported
Fully Upgradeable
Mateerials Recoverable

Suddenly durability becomes innovation.

Built to last is not going backwards. It just might be the next great technological advance.

Better engineering.
Better materials.
Modularity.
Local repair.
Open information.
Longer warranties.
Upgradeable technology.
Circular production.
Products that evolve rather than expire.

Flip the Script

Buy less.
Buy better.
Keep it longer.
Fix what breaks.
Upgrade what changes.
Share what you don’t need
Recover what can’t be saved.

From built-in obsolescence to built-in possibility.

Less extraction
Less waste
Most valye
More local work
More life from everything we already have.

Less talking, more repairing.

What if the mark of innovation wasn’t how quickly we replace something—but how long we can keep making it better?