Adapting to the Sharing Economy

Instead of buying and owning products, consumers are increasingly interested in leasing and sharing them. Companies can benefit from the trend toward “collaborative consumption” through creative new approaches to defining and distributing their offerings.

Kurt Matzler, Viktoria Veider and Wolfgang Kathan

WINTER 2015

How do consumers access, buy and use their favorite products and services? The answer to that seemingly simple question is changing. While individuals have traditionally often seen ownership as the most desirable way to have access to products, increasing numbers of consumers are paying to temporarily access or share products and services rather than buy or own them.¹ This so-called “sharing economy” ...