Are Green Fridays Here to Stay?

PERHAPS THE LONG QUEUE outside of the Naturkompaniet, Sweden’s largest specialty outdoor retailer, store in Malmö wouldn’t normally raise any eyebrows on a Black Friday. But those waiting weren’t braving the cold for rock-bottom prices on the latest gear – they were there for the pop-up secondhand store.

During the weeks prior, the Naturkompaniet shop in Malmö had collected around 500 products – everything from snowboards to thermo wear, shell jackets and old backpacks from the 70s.

“It exceeded all expectations,” says store manager Björn Mattsson, who was responsible for the event.

Indeed, it didn’t take long for the shelves to empty, with nearly 70 percent being sold before noon. At the end of the event, just ten percent remained to be picked up by its owners or donated to a local charity.

In stark contrast to the usual Black Friday mayhem, Björn shared how he was moved by just how positive the atmosphere was throughout the event:

“Our customers are often satisfied, but this went beyond. I’ve never received so many positive comments – both in the shop and in social media,” shares Björn.

While the huge response was inspiring, it also gave him some food for thought regarding how much stuff is probably lying around unused at people’s homes:

“Good gear can have a long life, and the best from an environmental perspective is of course that whatever is already produced also gets used instead of us buying new all the time.”

Naturkompaniet is joined by an increasing number of outdoor retailers and brand stores that have decided to buck the mass-consumption mania of Black Friday, year after year, begging the question of whether Green Fridays have gone beyond a clever, yet well-intentioned, PR stunt to become a new, established tradition?