In a bid to dramatically reduce waste, the Berlin government has launched a state-run “department store” that both sells items that might otherwise get thrown away and acts as an education centre encouraging repair and re-use. Called B-Wa(h)renhaus (an apparently untranslatable pun meaning both department store and “conserving house”), the store covers over 700 sqm and sells used and upcycled clothing, furniture, phones and other electronics. In an attempt to reach beyond the usual people who already patronise second-hand shops, the store’s location is also significant: it’s not in an especially hip location, or a flea market known for knock-down prices, but within one of Berlin’s most established, middle-of-the-road department stores. It occupies the third floor of the Kreuzberg neighbourhood’s well-known Karstadt department store and has been planned to operate for a six-month pilot. The city says that it aims to open three or four re-use stores across Berlin in the near future. Its longer-term ambition, according to the city’s 2020-2030 waste master plan, is to launch a store in every one of Berlin’s 12 boroughs.