I live in Utrecht. One of the happiest cities in the world. With ambitious

targets to become energy neutral in 2030. With a university whose core pillar is sustainability. And with a very vivid Peerby community that makes sharing things from your neighbours a breeze.

Good conditions to think a step further about the way we share. Sharing from your neighbours, such as Peerby allows you to do, is great. Nowadays, many people are willing to lend their drilling machine or share their BBQ grill to strangers. But would you be inclined to share your very expensive carbon road bike that you are emotionally attached to because you rode it on countless trips? And what if your beloved tool breaks down or if it gets stolen? It does not need the intention of the borrower for these things to happen.

What could we have instead?

What could help is a system that involves not only individuals but

local shops. Including small and traditional shops could be the response to

one of the main threats of the new sharing economy: the destruction of the local economy. By incorporating local shops into the system, we do not harm but benefit the local economy that has been existing for centuries and that in many cities still shapes the look and feel of a city centre.

Let me briefly introduce the Swip Swop system

Every member pays a monthly fee to gain access to the platform. The more members the network has, the cheaper the membership fee could get. By being a member you gain access to the products of all participating shops. Borrowing your product is as easy as following four steps:

1. Use the smart-phone app or browse the catalogue of all available

products online. Obviously you would need to register a user account for this.

2. Select the product you want, indicate the day you want to borrow it and for how many days you want to keep it.

3. Simply go to the shop and pick up the product. By successfully borrowing the product, you place an automatic deposit equalling the value of the product you borrow. Just to ensure that you bring back the product. On top you pay a small borrowing fee equalling 10% of the value of the product.

4. Bring back the product at the agreed time.

Sounds too good to work. What could not work?

1. What happens to things that break when I borrow them?

Can happen. The local shop most likely has the skills to repair them. In

comparison to online shops and big chains they are traditionally used to

repairing their products before replacing it with a new one for cost reasons. We encourage repairs over replacements. Participating shops should first try to fix the product before they replace it with a new one.

2. What happens to things that I lose or that get stolen when I borrow them?

You are lucky. You do not have to pay directly because you are covered. A

community insurance system will pay half of the costs for replacements, damages and repairs. The other half is paid by the shop.

3. How does the community insurance system work then?

Before you can borrow things, you first need to register an account. Registering and owning an account costs 5€ per month. This money is used to sustain the insurance system and the platform itself. The money for the insurance is collected in a fund and used to help covering half of the costs

for replacements and repairs.

4. OK… but why should shops join?

In the described system I am referring to small, traditional shops. Often these cannot sustain the price competition with large international chains or online shops. But mobile technologies and the new acceptance trend of the sharing economy offer a new opportunity to retain the local customer base by granting them temporary access to high-quality products and offering a personal connection to the local shop owner in their neighbourhood.

Now I outlined what I am dreaming of setting up. Why doesn’t it exist in

Utrecht yet? Where does it exist already and what are the experiences gained so far?

I know that my thoughts are far from completely. Nevertheless I want to use this opportunity of having outlined my ideas in this article to open the

discussion and to gain valuable feedback from the community.