Let Them Buy New

Back Market, the leading global marketplace for refurbished devices, launched “Let Them Buy New” - a provocative new international campaign that calls ‘BS’ on Big Tech’s obsession with creating a need for new products, a wasteful cycle that has dramatic consequences for humans and the planet. The irreverent campaign parodies Big Tech's marketing ploys to challenge the accepted norm of buying new tech every time, to question a consumer bias for new, and to show that refurbished devices are a high quality, more affordable, and more eco-friendly choice.

The Back Market “Let Them Buy New” brand platform and creative, developed in collaboration with independent creative strategy company Gus, sets out to reframe the industry’s definition of tech innovation, demonstrating that the most innovative thing to do might not be buying the new thing at all. The campaign is underpinned by the brand’s challenger roots and its focus on building a mainstream societal shift toward a circular economy. Apple and the tech industry at large has helped contribute to the 50 million metric tons of E-waste produced each year, which is the largest growing waste stream globally and accounts for 70 percent of toxic waste.

The campaign launched with a subversive activation that poked at the industry's "leak culture" on one of the biggest tech moments of the year: Apple’s iPhone 15 keynote on September 12. In the days leading up to the event, Back Market teased the “R” - a top-secret, new phone that promised to be more sustainable and more affordable than all that came before it. Confidential product documents were “left by mistake” in high-traffic areas around Cupertino; tech and TikTok influencers received mysterious locked boxes containing the “R” prototype; and high-profile outdoor ads and billboards in New York City, Paris, Madrid, and London, added further speculation to fuel the Apple rumor mill. On the day of Apple’s keynote, the boxes unlocked and the outdoor ads switched over to reveal the truth: the prototype was a refurbished iPhone and the “R” stood for refurbished all along. DCX Growth Accelerator and Superbloom helped to produce the stunt.