The sharing economy
 |
| Attachment 1 sharing economy, source: “https://banyanhill.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/sharing-economy-1.jpg” |
I am preety sure we can point out a lot of
things we bought but they turned out to be useless and not needed, for example
a new shirt, the latest smartphone or a new car. There can be even such things
which we did not buy but it turned out to be unnecessary over time, like
additional room in our house when our child moved out. For some people, these
things or rooms may seem useless, but for others they may be an assets. Thanks
to the Internet we can generate profits by sharing unused resources. Nowadays
it is easier because thanks to websites and social media we can easily sell or
buy used goods. This is known as the shared economy.
 |
| Attachment 2 internet market, source: "https://www.newseria.pl/files/_uploaded/glownekonf_350672848,w_580,_small.jpg" |
Platforms such as Olx or Allegro give you the
opportunity to earn a few pennies while charging a small tax on each
transaction or item issued. It is a win-win situaction for everyone. Sellers
can get rid of unwanted stuff and make some money, buyers can buy wanted things
cheeper than in the shop and platform like olx can receive a small part of the
amount from each transaction. For example, parents to get some money back in
their pockets instead of opening a shop or throwing away the remaining and unused
items can sell used clothes, toys, strollers or other equipment on the
"Internet market".
 |
| Attachment 3 companies in shared economy, source: "https://cdn.kreezalid.com/kreezalid/files/2/sharing_economies.jpg" |
Companies have started to pay attention to the
viability of the shared economy and they are trying to benefit from these
unused resources. Such a business model has been used by many companies, for
example Airbnb is as an intermediary for people who earn money on their unused
rooms and homes by renting them. Another example is Uber, which encourages
people to use their own cars as taxis to earn some extra money when they do not
use it. This model of earning is criticised by many people, because this way of
earning is devoid of certain rules. However, in the consumer society in which
we currently live, the increased possibility of selling second-hand goods or
renting unused room can be good for economy and even may have positive impact
on our environment.
 |
| Attachment 4 environment friendly, source: "https://miro.medium.com/max/500/1*lBnhk5DHWY7sQVFZUJtPBQ.jpeg" |
Thanks to renting rooms many hotels have not
been built because the demand for renting rooms has decreased and much space
was saved for nature. Buying secound-hand goods is also good for nature because
many things are made from plastic and other environmentally unfriendly
materials so we should decrese production such things. The idea of shared
economy had spread all over the world and it seems to have many advantages for
variues areas of life.
Questions:
1. Do you support the idea of a sharing
economy and do you sell and buy used goods?
2. Do you know other companies that
make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this
article?
3. Do you have any idea what things
could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
Sources:
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sharing-economy.asp
https://medium.com/nomobo/the-sharing-economy-is-good-for-the-environment-heres-why-db37214215f7
Comments
I always find it too much hassle to pack and ship all the stuff I would like to sell and I end up giving up on the idea. But I buy used items from time to time if I can get a good deal.
2. Do you know other companies that make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this article?
I don't know if that counts but maybe Traficar? It's a company that rents cars for minutes. I haven't had a chance to use them but I really like the idea.
3. Do you have any idea what things could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
To be honest I have no idea. In the era of dense urban development, maybe an interesting idea would be to create shared gardens for people that enjoy working in garden but don't have their own?
Yes, I support the idea of a sharing economy. Firstly, it is eco-friendly, as it is one of the ways to reduce garbage and trash. Secondly, it is about the economy: you can earn some money or buy something cheaper.
And of course, I use its services. I have sold unnecessary sports equipment, books from school and university on Olx. I have bought goods on Allegro. And also, I use Uber if I need a taxi.
Do you know other companies that make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this article?
I think you have mentioned all popular companies of a sharing economy.
But I remembered the advertisement for the service Vinted. It is like Olx or Allegro which specializes in buying and selling clothes.
And, also, there are other taxi services similar to Uber. For example, Bolt.
Plus, except Airbnb, you can find a flat or room to rent on Booking.
Do you have any idea what things could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
Honestly, I can hardly imagine what it can be in the future. Maybe some food? Like a way to save some food from being wasted. I have heard that there is an app Too Good To Go, in which the cafes/ restaurants sell dishes at the end of their working day at cheaper prices. But you as a customer can know just the local`s name and price, and you do not know, what is inside the order.
I support the idea of sharing the economy, but I don't sell or buy used goods. I give my unused clothes back to some charity organizations. However, I use Airbnb which offer rooms or apartments to hire with cheaper price. When I'm abroad I assume that I won't spend the time in my room, I will only sleep there, so I don't see any point to pay more for a room from which I won't use.
2. Do you know other companies that make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this article?
Perhaps Vinted works with similar rules.
3. Do you have any idea what things could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
Maybe food? I think something similar exists right now, but I would be appreciated if this type of idea spread. It's particularly significant because every day people die due to the starving despite that enormous amount of food is thrown away every single day!
I am a fan of this idea because it gives people a possibility to use resources that they need without spending a lot of money. Many used goods are still as good as new ones so there is no need to throw them away if there is an opportunity to turn them into profit. Sometimes I buy used things and this allows me to save a lot of money. Usually I don’t sell my things but sometimes I exchange them with my friends.
2. Do you know other companies that make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this article?
There is a startup that I have heard about lately which is called “Plenti”. Their business idea is to rent electronic equipment to people in exchange for a small payment. I haven’t used their app yet but I am looking forward to doing so because they have some cool things in their offer. I always wanted to try out those Logitech’s steering wheels but those are very expensive and I am not that much of a racing games freak to spend all of my cash on one of those. Renting one, however, sounds like a great idea.
3. Do you have any idea what things could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
There are already many things to share with others: cars, apartments, clothes, equipment. The only things which comes to my mind at moment is software. I am sure that there are people who came up with such idea already but I haven’t seen it yet. Software and licenses could also be rented so I think that this would be a nice business idea.
2. There are a lot of companies like OLX - trading boards are an old invention. Also, there are car-sharing applications like Blablacar and others. And all those second-hand shops. So, in general, it is an old idea, but it comes to new areas and fields.
3. I think some things like car-sharing/renting can be centralized, so, for example, you will not own your own car but rent it from local government (or company which has a contract with the government for it) when you really need it. So there will be less pollution, traffic jams, car production, and spending money on fixing, etc.
Definitely yes. I very often buy used things and I prefer to sell or give away things that are no longer useful to me. I try to throw out as little as possible.
2.Do you know other companies that make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this article?
I know “Vinted” but I have never had the opportunity to use it.
3.Do you have any idea what things could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
It seems to me that the sharing market will grow more and more. Currently, we can rent practically everything from a car to small tools. In the near future, probably more and more people will be convinced of this type of “shopping”.
I can’t think of any other company that sells or rents second-hand goods. Sharing economy is much broader idea than just second-hand items. For example, all of the startups renting electric scooters or bikes in cities or other companies selling sharable digital goods online. But these ideas may not bring positive impact to the environment.
I think that eventually every good or service could have alternative distributed by on demand sharing economy. One idea I’ve heard from a friend and haven’t seen implemented is sharing washing machines, which basically comes to collecting and doing someone’s laundry for money.
I guess AirBnb should be on this list, also Bolt another version of Uber, and EBay.
I think about electricity, which everybody can make from solar batteries, I read an article about sharing electricity in Australia, a lot of people bought solar batteries and warehouse for this electricity and sell it to neighbors with lower price from government, its really good opportunity to get more than “pennies”.
Yes! I think it can definitely positively influence our environment and could decrease the consumerism. Specialists have argued that this could badly influence the economy, but it has created new opportunities for profits, such as lending cars or apartments.
2. Do you know other companies that make money on selling or renting second-hand goods besides the ones in this article?
I can't think of any besides the ones that you have mentioned, but there are plenty of opportunities to sell used goods in events such as a neighbourly exchange or Facebook groups.
3. Do you have any idea what things could be used in the future in the shared economy idea?
There're many possibilities, but I hope that people that haven't tried it yet will do so in the future.