ITOCHU Announces Demonstration of a Collection Project for Household Mobile Phone Devices No Longer in Use ("Treasure Devices"*1)

February 9, 2022

(Updated on February 17, 2022)
Discontinuation of mobile device collection in the pilot test at certain FamilyMart stores
ITOCHU has been conducting its pilot test on mobile devices collection at certain FamilyMart stores and decided to discontinue the collection, which had been suspended. ITOCHU sincerely apologizes to those who brought their devices to the stores after the suspension and those who have awaited the resumption of collection for any inconvenience caused by this decision. On the basis of the findings of the pilot test, ITOCHU will continue deliberations on establishment of a new system that makes this collection service easier and more accessible to users.

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ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Keita Ishii, President & COO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today the start of a demonstration of a collection project for household mobile phone devices no longer in use (hereinafter "treasure devices"). In addition to collection demonstration at certain stores of the group company FamilyMart, we are also implementing collections for employees of companies both inside and outside the group.

The number of treasure devices in Japan has been increasing year by year because of time-consuming data transfers and worries about personal information leaks. It is estimated that there are total 270 million devices as last year, with an estimated value of 3 trillion yen.*2 Utilizing treasure devices will not only energize the second-hand market but can also be expected to contribute to the SDGs as using second-hand devices has a greenhouse gas reduction effect of about 42%*3 and they contain rare metals that are only produced in small quantities.

ITOCHU is starting a demonstration of collecting treasure devices. As a first step, we will collaborate with FamilyMart and collect treasure devices at 25 FamilyMart stores in Tokyo. Customers who bring their devices to the store will receive FamilyMart coupons worth 1,000 yen in exchange for each device.
Moreover, we are collecting treasure devices from employees through their companies. We are encouraging companies to collect private devices from their employees, thus contributing to their respective SDG initiatives.
The collected devices are inspected and their data is deleted at a high-quality center run by the group company Belong Inc. (hereinafter "Belong"), which is engaged in the online distribution of second-hand mobile devices, and those devices are reused and recycling using our global distribution network.

As the basic policies of its medium-term management plan, ITOCHU has set “business transformation based on ‘market-in’” and “contribution to and engagement with the SDGs through business activities”. Through this Treasure Device Collection Project and the corporate purchase service Belong Buy-back/Trade-in for Biz, both companies will aim to contribute to the development of a sustainable society by way of effective use of our limited resources.

  • *1Treasure Device is a general name for mobile phone devices (smartphones and conventional mobile phones) that are no longer used and tucked away in places like the drawers of a desk at home.
    We call them "Treasure Devices" because we want to change them from unused objects lying at home to treasures of the planet. (Trademark application pending)
  • *2Source: The Total Value of Unused Mobile Phones (2021 edition), Katsuhiro Miyamoto, Emeritus Professor at Kansai University
  • *3Source: Calculated based on LCA analysis by the Sustainable Management Promotion Organization (SuMPO). Comparison of the GHG emissions of two new iPhone 11s used for two years each and one new iPhone 11 unit used for two years and then reused for two years after collection, inspection, and resale.

ITOCHU and Belong's initiative to collect second-hand mobile phone devices

Overview of demonstration at FamilyMart stores

※Mobile device collection has already been discountinued
Demonstration overview  : Treasure device collection at FamilyMart stores
Devices collected  : Smartphones (iOS, Android), tablets, feature phones
Customer reward : 1,000 yen coupon that can be used at FamilyMart
Period   : Tuesday, February 1, 2022 – Thursday, March 31, 2022 
Stores  : 25 stores in Tokyo (see table below for details excluding 2 stores in the workplace)

Store name Address
msb Tamachi 3F 3-1-21 Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Hamamatsucho 1-chome 1 -27-17 Hamamatsucho, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Shiodome Media Tower B2F 1-7-1, Higashi-Shimbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Metro Gaien-mae B1F 2-5-8 Kita-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Jingu Stadium Dori 2-7-26 Kita-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Shinagawa Eki Konan Guchi 1-9-32 Konan, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Ueno Ekimae 7-3-2 Ueno, Taito-ku, Tokyo
Omori Bellport Mae 6-25-3 Minami-Oi, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo
Isuzu Honsha Mae 3-35-10 Minami-Oi, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo
Komazawa Daigaku Ekimae 3-18-14 Kamiuma, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo
Komazawa Jiyu-dori 4−21 Komazawa 1-chome, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo
Nippon Seinen-kan 4-1 Kasumigaoka-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Ikebukuro Green Odori 1-12-3 Higashi-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo
Higashi-Ikebukuro Meiji-dori 1-35-3 Higashi-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo
Ikebukuro Kitaguchi 1-43-7 Nishi-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo
Toshima Ecomusee Town 2-45-3 Minami-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo
Hachioji Akatsuki-cho 1-21-8 Akatsuki-cho, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo
Nakagami Ekimae 1-6-2 Asahi-cho, Akishima-shi, Tokyo
Ome Suehiro-cho 2-chome 2-8 Suehiro-cho 2-chome, Ome-shi, Tokyo
Higashikurume Yanagikubo 13-7 Yanagikubo 2-chome, Higashikurume-shi, Tokyo
Kiyose Ekimae 1-2-7 Motomachi, Kiyose-shi, Tokyo
Musashimurayama Shin-Ome-Kaido 26-1 Mitsufuji 1-chome, Musashimurayama-shi, Tokyo
Nakano Yayoi-cho Hongo-dori RUHE Nakano-Sakaue, 24-8, Yayoi-cho 1-chome, Nakano-ku, Tokyo