Trend: Chic Swapping

Big brands are promoting themselves by initiating swapping events and systems, using their reputations to add reliability, trust and glamour.

Trend Description

Freecycle and the P2P movement are making people realise they don’t need to buy everything they need. Big brands are tapping into this and boosting their reputations by using their heritage, talents and infrastructure to connect peoples’ needs and wants locally, nationally and globally. With the trust placed in such established brands, people are given the confidence needed to swap items as precious as their homes. Brands benefit as users are relying on their service, spending time with the brand to build their relationship with it. They also improve their reputations as socially and environmentally motivated organisations that think differently.

Cases

IKEA Husselmarkt

As part of its campaign to encourage customers to think like designers, IKEA’s Amsterdam store let people bring in furniture to be swapped on February 9th. Although initially it seems IKEA had nothing to gain financially from the venture, closer inspection reveals that once a customer puts a new piece of furniture in their house, they are more likely to buy a lamp, table or shelving to complete the look (image above).

Guardian Houseswap

For £35, customers in every corner of the globe can join the house swapping service run by the Guardian, Britain’s progressive newspaper. The service is pitched as a more authentic way to experience another country, as well as more cost-effective, as it is a direct swap with no rental charges. The service builds on the Guardian’s brand values of thinking differently, taking in new experiences and living well.

Visa Swap

Visa has teamed up with TRAID to help users swap unwanted but fashionable clothes. The value of each item is assessed and awarded points on a dedicated Visa Swap card. At a later date, a pop-up shop containing all the items is opened, enabling swappers to spend their points in a boutique environment normally associated with luxury living, rather than jumble sales and flea markets.

Trend Impact

Whereas the cases above use swapping to promote their standard product sales income model, expect more major brands to use swapping as their primary source of income. One opportunity could be for a well-known, large-scale, trusted timeswap network and system. Revenue potential may also lie in providing venues for swapping events, the infrastructure and supporting services such as tracking items and recording transactions, or charging for access to exclusive, high-end swapping events and networks.

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