If you’re reading this, you’re probably on the same mission as us - to make the most sustainable decisions when it comes to the mountain of equipment you need for your new baby.
Should you buy a second hand bedside crib?
You’ve probably thought about buying things second-hand. Or at least you’ve taken comfort in the fact that you can pass what you buy onto another mum or dad-to-be. Of all the options, second-hand products have the lowest environmental impact - right?
We wondered the same thing before we founded Alora. Can producing even more stuff really be the best way to a more sustainable world? The truth is actually clear to see.
Second-hand is good. Circular is better.
The average bedside crib passes through only two sets of hands before it’s sent to landfill. That’s just enough time for the “eco-illusion” of second-hand to show itself: the first owner (who acknowledges that they don’t actually want dirty, smelly, potentially unsafe products - especially when it comes to our kids) can feel less guilty about buying a new product because they tell themselves they’ll pass it onto someone else. The second owner feels less guilty about throwing it away because they got it second-hand in the first place - it feels like “the right time”.
Just two cycles before landfill or incineration.
And, frankly, it’s just as well. After the fifth, sixth, seventh time a bedside crib changes hands it’s not just the smells and stains we have to worry about - it might not even be safe. These products aren’t designed for more than one use - it even says so in their Ts & Cs.
It’s a hard thing to come to terms with, but in reality a “second-hand” economy is only marginally better than the catastrophic “make-sell-dispose” model that defines our everyday world.
Remanufacture for reuse again and again
It feels counterintuitive (trust us, we know!), but buying something designed for remanufacture is actually a far better solution. Alora is still a young company, so we don’t know how many cycles our bedside cribs will ultimately end up going through - but our business model is based on at least seven, with potential for an even greater number.
Our remanufacturing process ensures each crib emerges completely new, fully safety-compliant, with every cycle. The process re-uses over 85% of raw materials, produces over 83% less carbon emissions, and has zero toxic offshoots. Plus instead of mining new materials, it creates new jobs through remanufacturing the materials we already have.
It’s a real win-win scenario. This is the power of the true circular economy - not the greenwashed version that has come to dominate our instagram feeds and glossy advertising campaigns (recycling Coke bottles is not revolutionary).
It took us a bit of time to accept the reality of the second-hand “eco-illusion”. But it's actually completely logical.
We no longer have to feel guilty about buying new products. It's literally the best thing for the planet.
Explore the Alora Bedside Crib today and be part of a radically better, radically kinder solution.