Q&A

Where did the idea come from?
It began with Rachel noticing how “Co-everything” seemed to be everywhere. At dinners, instead of friends bragging about their new Prius, they boasted how they had given up their cars altogether by becoming “Zipsters.” More and more people we knew were selling stuff on craigslist and eBay, swapping books, DVDs, and games. In business meetings, we both kept hearing about ideas related to peer-to-peer collaboration. Blogs, newspapers, and magazines were brimming with articles on connected themes such as trust, reputation systems, the creative commons, open innovation, and social currencies, and they were dedicating daily features to covering something to do with sharing, bartering, lending, or swapping.

We sensed that these examples and the widespread interest in sharing and cooperation were more than trends; they were the emergence of an interconnected socioeconomic groundswell. As we searched for consistencies in the likes of Zopa, AirBnb, thredUp, and others, we discovered that each example had a very identifiable and consistent DNA. As we delved deeper into the research three clear systems emerged: Product Service Systems, Redistribution Markets, and Collaborative Lifestyles. The next “a ha” moment was identifying that all the examples of Collaborative Consumption shared similar underlying principles essential to making them work: critical mass, idling capacity, belief in the commons, and trust between strangers. It’s easier to see how all pieces that make up Collaborative Consumption came together in this visual.

The process of writing the book was exhilarating as everyone we spoke to — including entrepreneurs, consumers, designers, environmentalists, and thought leaders — all agreed that we were identifying something big, important, and timely with the concept of Collaborative Consumption.

Why is it emerging now?
The convergence of peer-to-peer social networks, a renewed belief in the importance of community, pressing unresolved global environmental concerns, and cost consciousness is moving us gradually away from the old top-heavy, centralized, and controlled forms of consumerism towards one of sharing, aggregation, openness, and cooperation. To use a cliché expression, we really are in a “perfect storm” to create a powerful shift from individual getting and spending towards a rediscovery of collective good.

What was the most surprising aspect you uncovered?
Rachel Botsman: When we started writing the book, we had around 50 examples. Nine months later, we had over 1,500, and we knew we had just started to skim the surface. We knew the groundswell was out there but the scale, impact, and diversity of Collaborative Consumption was definitely a surprise. It was wonderful to discover that these examples were not just happening in major cities that you might expect, such as San Francisco and London, but also in all corners of the world from Rio de Janeiro to Tokyo.

Roo Rogers: For as long I have been in business there have been constant efforts to show how responsible business makes good business. While almost every major corporate company now has a Corporate Social Responsibility Report, our environmental and social problems don’t seem to be getting any better. We consume more oil and produce more CO² than ever before, and we don’t seem to be any healthier or happier for it. Collaborative Consumption has the potential to have the real impact that has eluded us for so long, and it fits almost seamlessly into our current capitalist market economy. Major businesses with significant profits such as Netflix are prospering in Collaborative Consumption and are replacing the older, unsustainable models at an exciting and dynamic pace.

Why did you decide to write the book?
RB: I felt it was important to pull together the many strands of a big idea with massive market, social, and environmental potential that readers might not be aware of — or certainly haven’t named as such — but that they might have actually started to incorporate into their own lives.

RR: First and foremost because it is a story that needed to be told. Collaborative Consumption existed everywhere, but it consisted of fragments and independent initiatives. By identifying and consolidating them in one place I hoped that we could help the system grow faster and therefore massively increase its potential impact.

How did you come together to collaborate?
We were working together at OZOlab at the time, incubating a new venture called OZOwater. Rachel was talking on a daily basis about this idea for a book to the point that our lunch discussion became Collaborative Consumption fests! Before we knew it, we had mapped out what we thought would make an important and timely book. One day, Rachel walked in with “What’s Mine Is Yours” scribbled in a notebook (she spotted it on the front cover of a CD by Eliot Morris) and, bingo, there was the title.

What’s your favorite aspect of Collaborative Consumption?
RB: I love how Collaborative Consumption is reinventing an old form of trust. Some examples of Collaborative Consumption such as AirBnb or RelayRides would have seemed like crazy ideas even a few years ago, but now we have the technology and reputation systems to make them feel secure and easy-to-use by building trust between strangers. CC enables all kinds of new marketplaces that have a healthy balance of commerce and community to evolve and stick.

RR: Collaborative Consumption is one of those unique emerging ideas that has the potential to radically change the way we live without causing or depending on enormous political or social disruption. The problems we face today are complex and reach across our economy, environment, and society, and consensus about how to deal with them has painfully eluded us. As a grassroots movement, Collaborative Consumption is exciting because its adoption is simple and grounded in rational self-interest. Because of this, its impact is far-reaching and already delivering measurable results.

How does it relate to the Web 2.0 concepts such as crowdsourcing and social networks?
Online peer-to-peer sharing and collaboration is the precursor and foundation for Collaborative Consumption. Not only are many of the markets dependent on the infrastructure of social networks, but we believe we have reached a powerful inflection point where we are starting to apply the social behaviors that have become second nature in communities such as Flickr and Facebook to other areas of our everyday lives such as money and travel.

What are some of your favorite examples of Collaborative Consumption?
RB: There are so many that I think are powerful for different reasons. I think P2P lending and social-lending communities such as ZOPA will become huge. I believe virtual currencies such as VEN and reputations systems are the next big thing. I love the simplicity yet brilliance behind ideas such as AirBnB and Landshare. They are so obvious you wonder why they have never been done before! And then there are examples such as TradeSchool where a group of passionate people have had an immediate and direct impact on their communities.

RR: I really admire the ones that have reached scale such as eBay, craigslist, and Freecycle. They are marketplaces in their own right and show that, while Collaborative Consumption is a bottom-up movement, it has the ability to compete with the goliaths of our economy such as Wal-Mart and Costco. But at the same time I love the playfulness and targeted nature of businesses such as Bag Borrow and Steal, Park at My House, and Bixi.

What happens to businesses dependent on selling lots of products?
We believe these businesses need to move from a point of sale to a point of service mindset. Plus, rather than just focusing on number of goods sold, they need to shift to thinking about membership and micropayments built around usage. We have seen how companies that pioneer new models of Collaborative Consumption based on these principles can disrupt sectors. Just look at Netflix versus the ailing Blockbuster, or Zipcar versus General Motors.

Consumer products companies should see Collaborative Consumption as an opportunity to innovate and grow, increase customer loyalty, and create new sources of revenue — not to mention a cleaner conscience. For example, why doesn’t Zappos create a shoe repair system that makes worn shoes as good as new and attach a swap market to it?

What was the best part of writing What’s Mine Is Yours?
RB: Without a doubt it was meeting and interviewing many CC entrepreneurs and champions. From the CEOs to the community pioneers they all shared this wonderful authenticity, creativity, and optimism. A close second was having the time to uncover and connect the dots between zeitgeist ideas in the disparate fields of brand, sociology, business, sustainability, politics, technology, and design, and then fuse them together in a book that I hope will make a meaningful difference in our daily lives.

RR: Beyond the excitement of revealing an inspiring and exciting idea, I think what I loved about writing What’s Mine Is Yours was getting the time to read, think, and write. Being an entrepreneur is a very hectic and moment-to-moment existence and it was nice to get to step out of that.

What’s it like co-authoring a book?
It was hard, but the push and pull and passionate debates we believe made the book that much better! We had the added hurdle that we were 16,000 km (nearly 10,000 miles) apart for much of the process and had to rely on lots of hand waving through our dear friend Skype.

What is the one “a ha” you hope readers will take away?
“I can do this!” Collaborative Consumption is not some Pollyanna-ish niche idea; it is all around us in very accessible ways and has massive social and commercial potential.