Encourage consumption in moderation, especially when circular solutions lower consumer prices.

Examples:

• Rather than promoting circular offerings through discounts or “buy more, save more” campaigns, focus on messaging that promotes sufficiency-oriented lifestyles. Highlight value through durability, shared use, and minimalism.
• Consider loyalty programs that align economic viability with consumption reduction, rewarding reduced consumption instead of increased purchasing. For instance, a digital program where customers photograph their items in ongoing use over months and years, earning repair and maintenance credits as rewards.

Visit the sufficiency database:
The Business for Sufficiency Database, developed within the project CircularX, provides real-world examples of businesses that promote sufficiency to their customers through awareness-raising actions, such as informing customers about the environmental impact of products or “Buy Less” campaigns.

Monitor and track the allocation of additional profits generated by circular practices.

Examples:

• If circular business models improve profit margins, reinvest a portion into verified ecological or social impact funds.
• Invest savings from material reduction into Research & Development for further efficiency and circularity improvements.
• Define clear internal criteria for sustainable reinvestment, such as supporting biodiversity, clean energy, or employee upskilling in green practices.

Assess and preempt unintended substitution effects.

Examples:

• Conduct a substitution impact analysis when introducing a circular service to determine if it may displace more sustainable alternatives.
• Communicate transparently with customers, e.g., include disclaimers or guidance suggesting that car-sharing is not a replacement for walking, biking, or public transit where feasible, and cooperate with public transportation operators when relevant.

Focus on circular practices that measurably reduce your material demand.

Examples:

• Create products that use fewer materials without compromising functionality.
• Establish internal material loops to minimise external material purchases.
• Develop business models where products serve multiple customers through approaches such as sharing systems, product-as-a-service offerings, multi-functional products, and sequential use.

While buying circular alternatives, such as recycled materials and reused products, ensure that you replace the use of non-circular materials and products in your process.

Examples:

• Implement a system to ensure that every circular purchase corresponds to a reduced purchase of virgin materials.
• Remove non-circular options from approved supplier lists unless no circular alternative exists.
• Require suppliers to provide documentation of recycled content or reuse certification.

Design products for maximum substitution where your circular input has the potential to replace multiple virgin/new alternatives.

Example:

• Ensure recycled materials closely meet virgin quality; while reused products made of recycled materials can be shared or multi-functional and replace multiple new alternatives.

Create guaranteed displacement programs.

Examples:

• When selling recycled materials, create contractual agreements or partnerships with buyers who commit to reducing virgin material use.
• Develop tracking systems hand in hand with your clients to verify substitution rates.

Monitor material consumption and substitution at the industry level.

Example:

• Establish key performance indicators that measure net material reduction as well as recycled use and content.

Conduct Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

Examples:

• Integrate LCA into the design and decision-making phases to assess the full environmental impact of circular products, including production, use, and end-of-life stages.
• Use LCA to compare circular and non-circular alternatives on a per-unit basis to ensure that circular solutions truly reduce net resource consumption.

Collaboration across the value chain and with the public sector to optimise infrastructure needs.

Examples:

• Work with suppliers and downstream partners to align practices and reduce indirect resource impacts, such as shared logistics and joint investments in energy-efficient digital infrastructure.
• Engage partners in joint LCA studies to gain visibility into their resource use and identify co-optimisation opportunities.