Trends in Sharing
I’m not saying that the now well-established trend of the sharing economy will rapidly take over the common practice of ownership. Providers of goods like cars will still continue to sell possessions in the future. But the buyers may then be increasingly enthusiasts or collectors. Moreover, as ownership in any form binds you to certain commitments, being flexible in terms of mobility might not correspond to the ownership of a vehicle anymore and in future even outweigh its current advantages.
Last year in a blog post, I analyzed business ideas that emerged from the sharing economy trend, how they were coordinated over platforms, as well as their underlying financial processes. Back then, I predicted that a mere business idea that involves the sustainable trend of sharing – no matter how grand – would not be enough. Instead, the entire processes within a company need to be aligned with the new possibilities of the sharing economy. Particularly in the automotive sector, which before was mostly concerned with selling as many cars as possible, new processes must be established to also reach those, that do not want to own a car while still being mobile.
This is not intended to discourage, but to motivate the pioneers of our age to seek out solutions – namely, those that simplify complex processes.