In the past decade, we’ve seen a renewed resurgence in environmental consciousness as we grapple with the impact that we’re having on our planet.  The younger generations are starting to place pressure on organizations to let go of the status quo of the past, and move towards a more sustainable future.

One of the industries that need to go through this sort of revolution is the furniture industry.  Fast furniture is a phenomenon that threatens to cause widespread damage to the environment and we need to rethink how we respond as a society.

What Is Fast Furniture?

The term fast furniture refers to our tendency to choose cheap, trendy, furniture that is easy to disassemble and is not intended to last for the long term.  It borrows a lot of its meaning from the fast fashion industry which produces low-cost clothing items at scale, only for the vast majority to land up in trash heaps one season later.

Fast furniture is a natural reaction to our more flexible and fast-changing social environments.  People are moving houses more and more, and the design trends are changing so fast that many choose to replace their furniture every few years, rather than holding onto the pieces for decades.

Some of this can also be attributed to the impact of social media giants like Instagram which are constantly highlighting the flavor of the month and creating consumer demand as a result.

While this can be exciting and novelty-inducing, it comes at a serious cost.

Why Is Fast Furniture Bad for the Environment?

With furniture turnover accelerating so dramatically, the sheer volume of furniture that is being thrown away is staggering.  While some of it may be recyclable, most of it is not.  And even those pieces that can be recycled require a lot of time, effort, and expertise – which is not always available at these waste dumps.  As a result, millions of tons of glass, fabric, metal, leather, and other such materials end up in landfills every year, contributing to the fast-growing waste problem that we face.

Another concern is the types of chemicals that are used to create this furniture at such a low cost.  Formaldehyde, neurotoxins, carcinogens, and heavy metals are all key components of the production process and they affect producers and consumers alike.  Combine this with the impact of cheap foam and you have yourself some serious potential dangers.

This is not a good state of affairs and we need to take it very seriously if we are to turn the tide and craft a more sustainable future for the industry.

How The Everset is Tackling This

The Everset is a company born from this realization and we’ve set out to challenge the norms of fast furniture.  We provide premium furniture rentals to people who are moving to New York and don’t want to contribute to the fast furniture problem.  When you rent from us, you get high-quality, timeless pieces to use temporarily before you jet off again somewhere else.

This model is cost-effective, environmentally sustainable, and it makes it possible for you to enjoy furniture that you might never have been able to afford to buy yourself.  If this sounds of interest, be sure to get in touch today, and let’s see how we can help!