ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Keita Ishii, President & COO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that it will launch “GAKU-RELAY”, the industry’s first CtoC platform-based service facilitating the handing down of used school uniforms and used school supplies to the next generation . ITOCHU will start to offer the service in the spring of 2024 for students attending elementary, junior high and high school.

In recent years it has become expected that new distribution networks for used school uniforms and used school supplies will be established, reflecting the social background, including the increased price of school uniforms due to higher raw materials and logistic costs, and the changes in values as indicated by the increase in environmental consideration and sustainability awareness. However, purchasing or selling used school uniforms through existing CtoC platforms is prohibited to prevent people from purchasing them for reasons other than their reuse by students attending the specific schools, except for trades conducted as a part of intercommunity initiatives or at some secondhand school uniform stores.

“GAKU-RELAY” is CtoC platform-based service that facilitates the handing down of used school uniforms and used school supplies to the next generation . The platform utilizes the School Life*¹ security system*² for online school uniform platforms that ITOCHU has been promoting since 2020, to make sure that school uniforms and school supplies are traded between the guardians of students attending the same school without making them available to third parties other than school personnel, while simultaneously ensuring anonymity. By addressing the demand for school uniforms from newly enrolled students, as well as their later requests for uniforms of different sizes, ITOCHU will work to energize the used school uniform and used school supply market.

ITOCHU will work to reduce the economic burdens bourn by each family by facilitating the handing down of school uniforms and school supplies that have become unnecessary to the next generation of students instead of disposing of them, while also realizing a recycling-oriented society through the effective use of resources. By doing so, ITOCHU will contribute to creating a sustainable society in line with its corporate mission, “Sampo-yoshi,” good for the seller, good for the buyer and good for society.