HOSPITALITY
Economy 2.0: Sharing
By and For Consumers
WHETHER IT INVOLVES HOUSING, RIDE
SHARING OR MUSIC STREAMING, A NEW WAVE
OF ACCESS-DRIVEN, PEER-TO-PEER BUSINESS
IS DISRUPTING ESTABLISHED INDUSTRIES
opportunities for the sector if, rather
thanfightingthe threat,mediaproviders
exploit opportunities by exploring new
distribution models to promote higher
audience engagement. As the success
of music-streaming service Spotify
demonstrates, content creators are
adopting metrics beyond linear sales
and finding ways of monetization via
sharing platforms, such as advertising
revenue.
Automakers
Due to the striking advancement of
companies like Uber and Lyft,
automakers have been placed under
the spotlight. Bike sharing, car-sharing
and ride-sharing reflect a huge cultural
shift and, as a result, traditional
automotive companies are rethinking
their positioning.
General Motors, one of America’s
Big Three automakers, announced
a $500-million investment in Lyft in
January 2016, and Ford CEO Mark
Fields has been talking about what he
calls “smart mobility” for some time,
or the combination of innovation and
data to enhance customers’ mobility,
The sharing economy is becoming very
large, very fast, and businesses need
to take notice. The issues to consider
include how sharing principles will
shape the wider market, and how
sharing economy concepts can be
applied to existing business models.
Retail
Retailers have been adept ‘disruptees’
when it comes to new concepts, with
the onset of e-commerce seeing the
creation of an omnichannel experience
for shoppers. However, innovative
companies have created sharing
alternatives. For example, FarFetch,
which partners with local and luxury
boutiques globally to showcase and
sell their inventory online, offers small
retailers the opportunity to retain their
brick-and-mortar stores, while still
granting them an online presence.
As retailers adapt and react, they
must weave sharing opportunities
into the customer experience and
facilitate peer-to-peer marketplaces,
allowing for rental or resale. This will
allow more consumers to experience
products ‘first hand’ while promoting
sustainability - something that appeals
to an increasingly environmentally
aware cohort of shoppers. Retailers’
physical footprints will also be under
the microscope, as the sharing ethos
encourages them to lend space to
other vendors in partnership efforts,
and leads them to further embrace the
pop-up movement.
Hospitality and Media
The sharing economy also presents
opportunities for the hospitality,
entertainment and media industries.
When it comes to hospitality, sharing
economy companies like Airbnb
certainly make travel more accessible.
But entrenched hospitality players
can still depend on customers who
seek assurances of consistency. This
means they can stick to their core
competencies, while adopting elements
that are simpler, more efficient and
enhance the quality of customers’
experience.
The sharing business model has had a
profound effect on the entertainment
and media sector. However, the
sharing economy presents untapped
Popularized by the likes of Airbnb and Uber, the sharing economy
has undergone rapid growth over the last five years. Airbnb is
now active in more than 190 countries and valued at more than
$20 billion. Uber operates in more than 300 cities and is valued
at more than $50 billion.
1
Some projections put the sharing
economy sector’s revenues at $335 billion globally by 2025.
6 | Cushman &Wakefield