In just six years Back Market went from three friends with an idea to a global company in eight different countries with nearly 300 employees from widely diverse backgrounds, experiences, and cultures. This has led to a wealth of experiences in fundraising, marketing, recruiting, and culture.

Back Market is a mission-driven company so the culture and the business are fully intertwined. The start-up attracts highly motivated employees who want to be part of building a company but also want to make a positive impact on society. The fact that Back Market’s business success is tied to addressing a major world issue (the environmental crisis caused by e-waste) results in a culture of passion, engagement, and empowerment. This year the team further mapped out this vision in their Sabotage New! ethos.

From the top ranks to the newest employees and even to contractors and partners, Back Market encourages ongoing dialog about the cause and provides opportunities to educate and discuss ways to make this a priority in other aspects of life outside of work. We also practice what we preach by providing employees with high quality, refurbished devices and outfit our office with second-hand furniture and fittings. The leadership and management are also involved in various speaking and community engagement groups as it relates to environmental causes and the circular economy. This allows the culture to come from management down in a very authentic way and not just words on a values statement.

Speaking of couches and ping pong tables, the team also had some important learnings from prioritizing keeping company culture alive and vibrant during the pandemic. That is to say it’s not the Zoom happy-hours or group exercise that is making a difference for the now suddenly distributed workforce, but rather the company vision. While the scrappy start-up team continues to work hard and cheer each other on, it is not because we organized them 15-minute coffee breaks on Zoom. It’s because they have a shared vision that brings employees together and motivates them.