Circular Transformation of Industries: The Art of Scaling Circular Supply Chains (Bain & Company)

Summary

• In a July 2025 survey of 491 executives across 10 manufacturing-centric industries, 95% said circularity will be important to their companies within three years, and 71% called it very important.p.4
• 70% of executives anticipate higher margin growth from circular activities than from linear ones.p.6
• Only 29% of people buy second-hand furniture and 35% buy second-hand clothing, although 67% cite environmental motives for circular behaviours.p.9
• Only 20% of businesses said they had an execution plan for their circular supply chain, while 70% said they were working on one.p.16
• Only 5% of companies operate fully independent circular supply chain networks.p.18
• Collection and dismantling are outsourced by 80% of organizations.p.19

Key insights

1. 88% of major transformations fell short of their goals, with 13% achieving less than half of their intended impact.p.6
2. Optimism is highest in the automotive sector, where 86% of respondents anticipate above-average revenue growth for circular products.p.6
3. Schneider Electric increased circular product coverage from 6% in 2022 to 38% of its ranges two years later and recovered 160 tons of equipment.p.18
4. Beko has collected and recycled 1.86 million units since 2014 through its appliance take-back programme in Turkey.p.21
5. 70-80% of companies plan to use AI for circularity in the future, compared to approximately 30% today.p.23
6. GreenPlat's supplier base has grown by 30% and its used cooking oil sales revenue increased by 16% since its 2021 launch.p.23
7. France's AGEC Law mandates 20% reused or recycled content for all public procurement.p.24