Sandra Leyva Martinez from Brambles/CHEP summed it up with compelling logic: “We don’t sell these assets: we rent them,” and, after the customer’s use, “we recover them, inspect them, repair them and then put them back into circulation.”

In their approach, the circular economy scales when there is real orchestration between suppliers, operations and customers, and when environmental metrics are integrated into indicators that already govern the chain: productivity, efficiency, losses and total cost.

“The key is integration, maintaining sustainability metrics integrated with what operations or procurement see,” he emphasized, and operating beyond the four walls, because circularity isn’t implemented in isolation. Following this logic, the conversation shifts from “end of life” to the entire operation: how the circuit is designed, how it’s monitored, and how it becomes replicable. At this scale, the model is best understood through numbers: Brambles operates in more than 60 countries and manages 347 million pallets, crates, and containers.

In the case of Mexico, Leyva connected the conversation to the regulatory front: he pointed out that “particularly in Mexico, the circular economy law is being developed” and that “the initiative was already approved in December 2025.” Under this interpretation, the next stage is not only conceptual, but also about installed capacity: building infrastructure and coordination among stakeholders so that materials and assets that can be reintegrated into the production system do not remain at a basic level of collection and disposal, but rather enable replicable value recovery circuits.

In Mexico, 102,895 tons of waste are generated daily , and only 9.63% of that waste is recycled, according to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) .

From Logitech , Sacni Leon brought the circular economy to the forefront: inventory control, warranty operations, and reverse logistics. His approach is pragmatic: “don’t be afraid to start something” because models change quickly; that’s why his recommendation is to start with pilot projects: “you have to start with something… it might be something small.”

He also added a commercial nuance that helps to understand why adoption is not homogeneous: “In Mexico and Latin America, product repair is very common… something that is not the case here in the United States.”

This contrast opens up opportunities for circular models that coexist with the primary market and enable alternative value routes, especially when there are mechanisms to recover product even at the end of its useful life and ensure its proper recycling.

In particular, Leon emphasized the shift in roles as these programs mature: in refurbishment and recommerce schemes, “you are no longer considered a cost center… you recover money and can generate a completely different business model.” In terms of supply chain , the implication is clear: circularity is not an isolated project, but a reconfiguration of capabilities, suppliers, inventories, and channels.

Reverse logistics as a product

For leaders in transportation and logistics, the key takeaway is that the circular economy is beginning to translate into marketable capacity: reverse network design, consolidation, triage , traceability, value-added partners, and visibility. Returns aren’t the central focus of the conversation, but they do serve as a signal of both pressure and opportunity: in the United States, retail returns are projected to reach $890 billion in 2024, and retailers estimate that 16.9% of sales will be returned.

This magnitude necessitates the professionalization of reverse logistics and the monetization of recoverable value instead of absorbing it as a loss. Optoro estimates that the cost of a return averages 27% of the purchase price and can wipe out up to 50% of the profit margin.

KPIs for profitable circularity

The common ground between both approaches lies in the method: profitable circularity requires reverse logistics with design and governance. The “minimum viable” for capturing value per cycle typically includes:

1. Recovery and consolidation (network, return points).

2. Triage (rapid classification by value, condition and compliance).

3. Revaluation (reconditioning, parts/components or certified disposal).

4. Traceability + Integrated KPIs (cycle time, recoverable %, cost per unit, waste).

During the circularity panel, Jo Marini, CEO and founder of Mothership Materials, and Stacy Flinn, CEO of EVRNU, also spoke, with Talia Rafaeli, Partner at KOMPAS VC, moderating. The discussion yielded a practical conclusion: the next competitive leap in supply chain will not only be about moving forward faster, but about closing the loop with operational discipline. The question for 2026: who designs the reverse network as a competitive advantage, and who continues to treat it as an exception?

Comment and follow us on LinkedIn: @Osiel Cruz Galindo / @GrupoT21