The Mesh - Lisa Gansky [1]
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First published in 2010 by Portfolio Penguin,
a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Copyright © Lisa Gansky, 2010
All rights reserved
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION DATA
Gansky, Lisa.
The mesh : why the future of business is sharing / Lisa Gansky.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
eISBN : 978-1-101-46461-8
1. Lease and rental services. 2. Sharing—Economic aspects. 3. Information technology—
Economic aspects. 4. New products. 5. New business enterprises. I. Title.
HD9999.L4362G35 2010
658—dc22
2010023606
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For my parents, Rose and Jack, my grandfather, Ben, and Suerte, the lovely
beings who have most shaped my worldview, offered unsolicited guidance, and
inspired a deep spirit of sharing and openness.
And to all beings who are finding the balance between care for “the self” and care
for our “shared self,” our planet.
Introduction
I was in Manhattan right around Christmas when an article about an L.A. landscaper named Scott Martin caught my eye. The recession was in full bloom, and Scott’s business had been in the dumps. As reported in the New York Times, Scott wasn’t one to get all that excited about Christmas, but there was one traditional sight that roused his ire. He hated seeing all the dead trees lying on the curb after the holiday, waiting to be hauled off to a landfill. Scott decided that this year, instead of just complaining about the waste, he would take advantage of it. As a landscaper, it would be simple for him to grow a stock of trees. Why not rent people living Christmas trees?
And that’s exactly what he did. He set up a Web site offering cedars, pines, cypresses, and redwoods in various sizes at corresponding prices. He hired people with disabilities to tend to the stock. He offered customers eco-friendly ornaments. At the appointed time, Scott and a small crew, which included several of his laid-off pals, gamely put on reindeer antlers and delivered the trees to people’s homes before the holiday. A couple of weeks later, he reversed the process. The crews picked up the trees, along with any wrapping paper to be recycled. Trees too big to save for the next season were donated to an urban reforestation project. The crew even offered to pick up their customers’ Goodwill donations and drop them off. Talk about holiday spirit!
Scott Martin had figured out a clever way to share Christmas trees, and make money doing it. Instead of buying, owning, and then tossing a tree, his customers got access to their trees precisely when they wanted them. They had a greater variety of choices than the corner lots offered. The service was fast and convenient. Customers used Scott’s site to pick their tree and delivery time (and one can easily imagine how mobile phones and tweets could sharpen the delivery details even further). No tying the tree to the roof of the car with bungee cords. No tripping and falling on the stoop