The rise of the sharing ecomomy

An interesting, and possibly optimistic, article in the Atlantic about the rise of the sharing ecomomy. Well worth a read but here's the bottom line (and why it's relevant):


What happens when millions of people spend 10 percent less on new things and 10 percent more sharing old things or getting sophisticated deals? It's easy to say that sharing is good for efficient markets. It's not so easy to say that sharing is good for a growing economy that depends on new shoppers.


The pessimist would say that the sharing economy is a smaller economy. The optimist would respond that by spending less money on homes, cars and clothes, we could get back to focusing on new projects. More family savings would find their way to banks and investment firms. That capital would flow into exciting entrepreneurial projects looking to answer more big problems. Young start-ups waiting to change the world with their new ideas would benefit from the capital that flows from all this new investment.