Why Retailers Should Prepare for ‘Right to Repair’
People have been complaining for at least a century about companies that limit who can repair their products—as well as designing products with planned obsolescence, which means it is manufactured in such a way that you need to buy a new version when the old one goes bad. Photo credit: Ifixit.com
The growing momentum to make products more fixable could have big implications for hardware stores.
Practically forever, hardware stores have been known as the place to go when someone needs to fix something. That reputation could soon sweep you up in a global “Right to Repair” movement that could provide new sales opportunities—and potential headaches.
You already may have heard about new Right to Repair laws being enacted by states and getting increased attention in Washington, D.C. Most of those laws are directed at complicated, electronics-rich, non-hardware products such as smartphones, farm equipment and automobiles. But in some states and particularly in Europe, regulations are being drafted that would extend repairability to simpler appliances and tools. Looking further ahead, one can even imagine a day when hardware stores would serve as collection points to take back and help recycle devices they have sold.
If what is happening in Europe seems unlikely to affect the United States, consider this: Apple is changing the plug on its latest iPhones because the European Union demanded it. Lots of products today are so international that one region’s regulations can affect the product’s design everywhere.
Hardware stores may start stocking circuit boards for a toaster or custom screws for brand-name products as a result of the “Right to Repair” trend. At the very least, these products could become part of the SKU array offered online by a hardware store’s wholesaler.
People have been complaining for at least a century about companies that limit who can repair their products—as well as designing products with planned obsolescence, which means they are manufactured in such a way that you need to buy a new version when the old one goes bad. What’s different today is that the federal government and state legislatures are listening. Five states have passed Right to Repair laws in recent years, including Oregon, whose law covers just about every product with a computer chip. Other states have covered products such as motorized wheelchairs and farm tractors. California’s new law requires manufacturers of electronics and appliances to provide parts, tools and documentation to product owners and independent repair shops, Consumers’ Checkbook reports. (Click here for the status of proposals in other states.)
