#Japan #Oikura #Market Enterprise #Bando City #Bando

Bando City Partners with Oikura for Sustainable Reuse Initiatives

Bando City, located in Ibaraki Prefecture, has embarked on an exciting new journey to tackle community challenges through a partnership with Market Enterprise, a company based in Tokyo. This collaboration aims to enhance the city's reuse business, starting from August 28, 2025, utilizing Market Enterprise's reuse platform, Oikura. The primary goal is to promote the reuse of unwanted items, thereby reducing waste and advancing towards a circular economy in Bando City.

Background and Context

In recent years, Bando City has been proactive in organizing events to raise awareness about waste reduction and recycling, showcasing initiatives such as lottery giveaways for recycled bicycles. However, the city officials recognized the need for improved communication and education surrounding reuse activities among residents. In response, Bando City searched for potential solutions to bolster its reuse initiatives.

Conversely, Market Enterprise, a company focused on online-based reuse services, has taken strides to address sustainability goals. They have ushered initiatives that connect public and private sectors, such as participating in the "Regional Revitalization SDGs Public-Private Partnership Platform" and contributing to community projects like the "Instrument Donation Furusato Tax" committee. Having established a partnership in February 2024 with eight cities in Ibaraki Prefecture, including Bando City, Market Enterprise aims to promote reuse activities robustly and work toward achieving SDG targets.

Given the mutual needs of both parties, the integration of Oikura’s platform into Bando City’s framework was born.

What is Oikura?

Oikura is a user-friendly reuse platform developed by Market Enterprise, allowing individuals to assess their unwanted items. Users can submit requests for evaluations through Oikura, which then facilitates bulk appraisal requests to numerous affiliated reuse shops, enabling price comparisons for their items. This seamless process has garnered praise from over 1.3 million users (as of June 2024), making it a favored choice for those looking to declutter.

Website: Oikura

Addressing Bando City's Challenges with Oikura

Bando City provides weekly bulky waste collection services where residents generally need to transport large or heavy items themselves to designated collection points. However, with Oikura’s service, sellers have the option for at-home pick-up, easing the process of selling cumbersome items like refrigerators and washing machines. Additionally, appliances that fall under the Home Appliance Recycling Law might be accepted for resale if they are still functional. The selling and transfer of items can be accomplished quickly—sometimes on the very same day as the request.

This service not only alleviates the burden on residents but also does not impose any additional costs on the city budget.

Future Prospects

Bando City will release information about Oikura on its website on August 28, 2025, around 3:30 PM, enabling residents to directly submit bulk assessment requests for their unwanted items. This collaboration aims to energize secondary distribution channels and foster a circular economy, significantly reducing the waste processing volume and associated costs for the municipality. Moreover, as citizens become more familiar with the convenience of item resale, the prevalence of reuse as a viable alternative to disposal will increase, addressing diverse disposal needs while promoting a cultural shift towards reuse.

This joint initiative represents a significant effort to resolve both the social and economic challenges in creating a sustainable circular economy.

About Bando City

Bando City is positioned in the southwestern part of Ibaraki Prefecture, acting as a gateway to the region with the Tone River bordering it and neighboring Chiba Prefecture's Noda City. Covering roughly 2% of Ibaraki’s total land area, it spans approximately 12 kilometers from east to west and 20 kilometers from north to south. Located within a 50-kilometer radius of the capital, the city features flat plains known as the Sarushima Plateau, comprising expansive rice fields and lush forests. Bando is recognized for its remarkable nature, including Sugo-numa, famous for the migratory swans it attracts.

With an annual average temperature of 16.6°C and an annual rainfall of about 1,053.5 millimeters, the climate in Bando is relatively mild.

Population: 51,836 (as of August 1, 2025)
Households: 22,280 (as of August 1, 2025)
Area: 123.03 square kilometers (as of January 1, 2025)
Website: Bando City

About Market Enterprise

Established in 2006, Market Enterprise has flourished as a company focused on online reuse and other services, including media and mobile communications. With a vision to create a sustainable society, Market Enterprise has consistently expanded, going public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2015, transitioning to the first section in 2021, and ultimately listing on the Prime Market in 2022. Notably, the company operates various platforms, including 'Takaku Ureru Dot Com' and Oikura, and has encountered significant growth through exporting used agricultural machinery to over 80 countries. With the introduction of the Oikura service in Bando City, the number of municipalities utilizing this service has reached a remarkable 273 across Japan.

Website for Municipalities: Oikura for Cities
Market Enterprise Website: Market Enterprise