Building Trust in Circular Furniture: How Supply Chains Can Reduce Risks

Mealy Amazon

22-09-2025

The Crows, however, find this Crow 2.0 to be a scammer, for he looks nothing like Crow but still claims to be in the family. They all gather to chase him away. It takes several beatings for the crow family to believe this is indeed a family relative. Crow 2.0 is shocked…

In “Contentment”; Wild Wise Weird (2024)

© Wix

The circular economy (CE) aims to replace the traditional “take–make–dispose” model with systems that reuse, repair, and recycle materials, reducing waste and pressure on natural resources [1]. While this vision is gaining ground in industries worldwide, putting it into practice often exposes companies to new risks. A recent study on Italy’s furniture sector explored whether supply chain integration (SCI)—the coordination of data, resources, and collaboration among suppliers, manufacturers, and retailers—can help overcome these challenges [2].

Furniture makers adopting CE practices, such as using recycled leather or refurbishing old products, frequently confront uncertain quality of secondary materials, unstable prices, and customer skepticism [3,4]. Smaller firms in particular lack resources to develop new systems for tracking and verifying materials. Moreover, while CE reduces environmental impacts, it does not automatically reduce business risks, such as reputational damage when customers doubt product quality.

Through case studies of five Italian companies, the research found that those with strong SCI systems—such as digital platforms for data sharing, co-sourcing agreements, and smart warehouses—were better at mitigating risks. By improving traceability and transparency, these firms reduced inefficiencies, anticipated disruptions, and built trust in sustainable practices. However, the study revealed a gap: downstream integration with customers is still rare, leaving companies vulnerable to consumer mistrust of recycled materials [2].

Sustainable transitions depend not only on technology but also on how well information and trust flow across human networks. Just as ecosystems rely on interdependence among species, sustainable industries rely on integration across actors [5]. From a Nature Quotient (NQ) perspective, this highlights the intelligence of perceiving ecological interconnections and embedding them into organizational practices. Firms that nurture NQ—by aligning human creativity, technological tools, and natural cycles—can transform risks into resilience [6].

References

[1] Geissdoerfer M, et al. (2017). The circular economy – A new sustainability paradigm? Journal of Cleaner Production, 143, 757-768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048

[2] Pellegrino R, et al. (2025). Can supply chain integration mitigate the risks inherent in circular economy transition? Business Strategy and the Environment. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.70224

[3] Arena M, et al. (2021). How can the waste management sector contribute to overcoming barriers to the circular economy? Sustainable Development, 29, 1062-1071. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.2202 

[4] Ethirajan M, et al. (2021). Analysing the risks of adopting circular economy initiatives in manufacturing supply chains. Business Strategy and the Environment, 30, 204-236. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2617 

[5] Nguyen MH. (2024). How can satirical fables offer us a vision for sustainability? Visions for Sustainability, 23(11267), 323-328. https://doi.org/10.13135/2384-8677/11267 

[6] Vuong QH, Nguyen MH. (2025). On Nature Quotient. Pacific Conservation Biology, 31, PC25028. https://doi.org/10.1071/PC25028