Bol wins the 2025 Wecycle Award for circular retail efforts

During the award ceremony at bol’s headquarters in Utrecht, Rogier van Drooge, Director Logistics at bol, accepted the award. “The Wecycle Award is a wonderful recognition for the work we have done for years in recycling, repair, and reuse. It motivates us to continue improving every day and to keep making circular shopping mainstream,” Van Drooge said.

According to Jan Vlak, Managing Director of Stichting OPEN, bol’s role demonstrates how circularity can be both scalable and impactful. “It is inspiring to see a major market player taking responsibility and showing how circularity can be embedded in a large-scale retail operation,” he said.

Repair and recycling services

Bol actively works to reduce e-waste by enabling customers to repair defective electronic devices, even beyond the warranty period. Customers can register their repair online or through the bol app and send the item free of charge to the manufacturer’s repair center. In 2024, around 150,000 devices were submitted for repair, with 90,000 successfully restored.

When a product cannot be repaired, bol ensures proper processing of discarded devices. In 2024, the company collected 1.2 million kg of waste electrical devices, lamps, and batteries, all handled by certified processors connected to Stichting OPEN.

Extending product life with reuse and refurbishment

Bol promotes circularity by selling second-hand, refurbished, and reused items. After years of offering used books and games, the company expanded into refurbished electronics in 2024. Following a successful pilot, Bol more than doubled its assortment with products such as desktops, monitors, and game consoles. Currently, twenty partners offer refurbished products on the platform, presented alongside new ones, giving customers a clear choice for more sustainable alternatives.

The company also supports reuse initiatives, including a trade-in program with French Recommerce that enabled the reuse of approximately 2,000 mobile phones in 2024. This is quite a disappointing number if you consider bol being the largest Dutch online seller of consumer electronics. Through its “Goede-Keuze” label, around 35,000 products made partially from reused materials were sold.

Return and donation flows

Bol’s logistics operations aim to minimize returns and maximize reuse of returned items. Only a small percentage of items sold by ol are returned, and around 70% of those can be resold after careful inspection. At bol’s return center, with over 150 workstations, products are checked and, when possible, repackaged. If only the packaging is slightly damaged, it is repaired and made fit for resale.

Items that cannot be resold are given a second life through return deals, outlet sales, or donations to charity. In 2024, 99% of returned items received a second life. Only items posing safety or hygiene risks are disposed of, and even then, bol recycles components where possible through certified partners.

Collecting e-waste through Wecycle points

Stichting OPEN manages the national system for collecting discarded electrical devices on behalf of producers and importers. Through thousands of Wecycle collection points across municipalities and retail locations, consumers and businesses can return electronic waste, lamps, and batteries free of charge. Bol’s headquarters in Utrecht also operates as one of these Wecycle drop-off points.