Who knows better what the Collaborative Economy really is about than the people who are actually active within it? Read on to see how Stine Skytte Østergaard is helping Copenhagen understand about the share economy in style ;)My beautiful pastel green balloon dress stares back at me every time I open the closet. This was my Maid of Honor dress to one of my best friend’s wedding – English folk dance jammed with hip-hop moves, lots of cake, wine and an ocean view - it was a day to remember. Every time I look at the dress, memories rush back and sadly it’s one of those pieces you wear once, maybe twice – that’s all, no more. I am too sentimental to give or auction it away at a flea market, because I am not sure if a stranger would appreciate the memories this dress fosters. Apparently, Stine Skytte Østergaard, some 1,500km away stumbled upon the same dilemma.
Sharing is an addiction - luckily with no "cure"!!!
Stine proudly holds up, What’s Mine Is Yours by Rachel Botsman, “this is my bible now" she says. "I read this book and was fascinated by it, loved it, loved the ideas presented in it. I asked my husband to read it and then we talked about how we could start collaborations happen in our community” she remembers. I realize Stine is no newbie to sharing, as she narrates her childhood in the 70s where reusing and sharing, clothes and toys was very natural that she owned pieces from siblings, cousins and friends. A close-knit family from an island in Denmark questioning her on “What to do with my life?” brought her to Copenhagen and then to Jutland, northern Denmark discovering the area of textile design, which she quickly embraced. So, it was only obvious, when Stine started organizing private dress swap parties for friends almost ten years ago, although, “nothing fit me”, she complains, “none of my friends were the same size as me, so I hardly swapped dresses with them”. However she enjoyed the experience of bringing people together, “so I thought wouldn’t it be fun to take this to another level inviting neighbors and strangers into this “sharing-swapping” experience”. Then it took Stine and her husband a year of thinking and Q&A’s to nail down on the idea, giving birth to Resecond, 18 months ago, in Jægersborggade - the design-artsy district in Copenhagen where registered members swap beautiful high-quality dresses.
As we talk, Ann, a regular member walks into the brightly lit store with big windows, lined with dresses in all colors and sizes. Unlike many second-hand stores or flea markets, Resecond is nicely arranged, not crowded, I also recognize Stine likes to make it a collection like store where trends and quality matter very much. Ann is here to see if Stine would like to add her blue-grey summer dress into the Resecond collection. Stine carefully investigates the texture, “I am looking at the textile quality, the current seasons, for example no small dresses in January and it’s also something about the personal feeling”, she points out, “if the dress is included into the selection or not”. Stine picks one out of the two dresses presented. Unlike your conventional swapping stores or apps, this one has an edge to it, which I absolutely adore since every dress in the store comes with a story tag instead of a price tag attached to it. The white lacey embroidered summer dress I see says, “This dress has experienced a beautiful summer, cocktails and beaches with the love of my life”. The stories themselves make for an “unconventional-shopping” experience - giggling at some stories and hunting through the dresses. Ann is a regular swapper and comes in 5-6 times a month and loves the concept, she says, “What’s there not to love, for a small fee I can walk in anytime, chose from an array of 250+ dresses instead of doing a one-time buy, swap them with my own or the ones I got from here”. She holds up a dress, “they are very high-quality, almost new and come with a story, connecting me with the memories of the dress and its previous owners. I remember each dress along with its story”, she says smiling, “making it more of a collaborative connections than just swapping”.
"This collaborative movement is only a scratch on the surface, oceans run deep – just like great ideas"!
Resecond members pay a half-yearly or a yearly fee of 600krone (80€) or 1000krone (134€) respectively, which cover the operating costs. The members have the pleasure of attending a mega-swap gala twice a year, which extends to more than dresses, a walk-in closet at Resecond in Copenhagen and Aarhus, and a fantastic community to connect with. There are also the honorary members who are the friends that put out the first 40 dresses to get the initiative rolling. The concept seems to be catching on, even faster since Stine introduced the Instagram feature for all dresses at the store, as we talk she receives a call from a member who wants to know what size the purple silk dress is, which was Instagrammed a few hours ago. The community is strong with 300+ members organically growing with 2-3 new members signing up every day. The 40 minutes we were at the store, I talked to 4 members, 3 potential members and 2 curious shoppers. For a city like Copenhagen famed for its massive flea markets this kind of member driven swapping is indeed impressive.
Stine has been a guest speaker at many conferences and talks, it was through a TEDx event that I heard about Resecond, so she beams when I inform her about the Ouishare fest in May and Rachel Botsman speaking at the event. She adds, “Events and fests are very important to emphasize the share economy and to bring people together”. With a thoughtful expression she adds, “on the one hand this idea of sharing is so obvious to me but recently I noticed that the young folks like you (Narmada) get it sooner than people in my own age. This is so funny and still a mystery to me since the people in their 40s now, grew up through the crisis and wars, a time of scarcity making sharing quiet obvious”. So, she stresses for an inclusive conversation involving all ages and backgrounds to shape the share economy (how to make things happen) – with the appropriate theme Age of the Communities for the Ouishare fest, I can say we are on the right track. Stine and her husband just love the idea of collaboration and sharing that they recently launched a free app called Resecond to make swapping happen independent of the store. Although Resecond has a second store in Aarhus, the wishful vision is to have a Resecond in Berlin or Stockholm even in Paris and to further diversify towards men suits maybe high-end furniture. “This collaborative movement (Narmada) is only a scratch on the surface, she says, “oceans run deep – just like great ideas”. I myself recently learnt that,Sharing is an addiction – luckily with no “cure”!!!
Featured image credit: Seanmcgrath via www.flickr.com/photos/mcgraths
Other images credit: Narmada Ramakrishna