Swapfiets has been awarded the internationally renowned B Corp certification. To receive this certification, a company must fulfil various criteria in areas such as the environment, employees and customers. With the idea of a higher quality of life through simple and climate-friendly mobility, Europe's leading bike subscription provider is gaining more and more members who prefer the solution of a rented bike to owning one. Swapfiets has been pursuing the goal of a completely circular product line for years. With the Swapfiets Deluxe 7 model, the company has already launched a model that is 88% circular. In addition, business operations are to be climate-neutral by 2025.
A growing community
The Netherlands is known to be a role model when it comes to cycling. According to recent studies, this cycling behaviour has an enormous impact on CO2 pollution: if everyone in the world cycled as much as the average Dutch person does every day, CO2 emissions could be reduced by 700 million tonnes. This corresponds to around 20% of global emissions from passenger vehicles. By joining the B-Corp network, Swapfiets now has new opportunities to make cities a little more liveable with its now more than 280,000 members in many European countries. And to further reduce CO2 pollution.
"It is in our nature to question the status quo. We firmly believe in the transition from a linear to a circular economy with a closed chain. We use the data from the bike repairs we carry out to develop sustainable products and extend the life cycle of our bikes," explains Swapfiets co-founder and Sustainability Director Richard Burger. "We are proud to join the B Corp community and see the certification as an additional promise of responsibility to our members. When we founded Swapfiets in 2014, we had a disruptive view of the market, because we have a different understanding of ownership and want to be smarter with scarce resources. The message 'stop owning, start using' is still the basis of everything we do. In view of the climate crisis and scarcity of resources, it is more relevant than ever."
Swapfiets' ambitious goals for the future
In this year's first sustainability report, Swapfiets presents its ambitious goals. A 100% circular product line and climate-neutral business operations are targeted within three years. With the additional B Corp certification and the goal of still meeting the requirements of the five pillars (environment, community, governance, employees and customers) in three years' time, the company has a lot to achieve in the coming years.
According to the company, the goal of a 100% circular product line requires innovation in the areas of repair, bio-based or recycled materials and reuse. Some bikes are already 77% to 88% circular. There are also a number of pilot projects and collaborations aimed at reducing the amount of waste and sustainability of workwear in shops.
"Based on an independent life cycle assessment, analysis of our data, algorithms and machine learning, we optimise our impact wherever possible. At the same time, we analyse where we need to make more of an effort. No one said the endeavour would be easy, but we, like other companies in the B Corp network, are determined to achieve our ambitious goals. We maintain an open attitude, are transparent about our ambitions and honest about the challenges of pioneering in a complex and fast-changing world," says Richard Burger.
Pioneers of the bicycle subscription
Swapfiets has been part of a network of pioneering companies since this month. Examples of the company's impact and pioneering work are listed here:
- Partnership with tyre manufacturer Vittoria2Go for long-life tyres: The aim is to produce no more rubber waste.
- More positive impact of Swapfiets bikes compared to other bikes by working and improving circular product lines: 35% lower climate impact of the 88% circular Swapfiets Deluxe 7 bike compared to other bikes
- New development of metal alternative made from recycled plastic to reduce climate impact
- Company continues to research alternatives for bicycle components with recycled materials
- Electricity for all shops, warehouses and offices to be generated from 100% renewable energies
>> MYBIKE tried out the Swapfiets subscription model. Read the experience report here
Lukas Niebuhr
Working student
