Purpose Gathering learnings through experimentation is considered a key lever for the implementation of product take-back. Based on an industrial case, this study explores how remanufacture of warranty returns can generate learnings, foster capabilities, and thus act as an experimental outset towards take-back of end-of-life products.

Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a single case study methodology. Data is collected through semi-structured interviews with practitioners from the case company, a large Danish mechatronics manufacturer.

Findings The study finds that targeting the existing return flow of warranty cases offer fruitful learning conditions due to pre-existing inspection and analysis capabilities. Not having to focus on product acquisition reduces complexity, and companies can instead experiment with remanufacturing to accumulate knowledge on product behaviour, reliability, and subsequent sales strategies. However, it comes with limitations.

Research limitations/implications As the study is based on a single case, generalizability of the findings is limited. Future research is encouraged to remedy this through multiple case studies, possibly across industries.

Practical implications The study introduces an approach to reduce uncertainties of product take-back and remanufacturing, which can be adopted by practitioners as vehicle for learning and enable them to instigate a circular transition.

Social implications The study aids to decoupling virgin resource consumption from growth ambitions.

Original/value The study adds coveted industrial insights to the implementation of product take-back and remanufacturing, and provides an approach to reduce uncertainty of the change process.