One of the ways communities can do this is to establish a Little FreePantry (LFP) and/or a Little Free Fridge (LFF) (also known as a Freedge). Both LFPs and LFFs are small structures stocked by community members, for community members who need food. They are similar to Little Free Libraries as they rely on the goodwill of neighbors to keep them stocked and in good condition, they do not hold large inventories, and people can access them at any time.

What is a Little Free Pantry?

LFPs are generally housed in wooden structures with glass doors so people can see what is inside without having to open them. These are stocked with canned goods, dry foods, and non-perishable items. LFFs may be housed in wooden structures but they may also be located in an open shed or similar structure near a power source. These contain food items — including produce — that need to be refrigerated.

In areas with food insecurity, Little Free structures like these provide a lifeline for those who don’t have access to food to meet their day-to-day needs (though they shouldn’t be relied upon for meeting ongoing needs). In more affluent areas, LFPs and LFFs are often stocked with snacks and those forgot-to-grab-at-the-grocery-store items you might need at a moment’s notice.

The first official LFP was established in 2016 in Fayetteville, Arkansas, but now hundreds of LFPs and LFFs are scattered across the United States, and even around the world. Join the movement, and create one for your community!

Step 1: Get up to speed on legalese and logistics

Before setting up a Little Free structure on your property, make sure there aren’t zoning laws against such structures. 

• Check with your city about any special permits you may need. 
• Fill out any necessary paperwork, and be prepared with answers to questions about safety and maintenance. 
• Be persistent and follow up on your paperwork as it moves through the approval process. 
• If you belong to a homeowners association, you may need special permission or additional paperwork to establish a LFP or LFF.
• Every state has specific rules related to the type of food that can be shared in LFPs and LFFs. While lawsuits related to donation sites like LFPs and LFFs are uncommon, you should check with your state, county, and city before establishing and stocking your food share site. (Freedge has compiled state-specific guides to help with this process.)
• Generally speaking, America’s Good Samaritan Food Donation Act protects food donors when donations take place through a non-profit entity. This law extends to food businesses in some states. Canada protects person-to-person food donations from lawsuits. This handy guide produced by the University of Arkansas School of Law outlines additional legal information related to food recovery.

Step 2: Choose a location

When choosing a location, remember that the goal is to provide for the community. 

• Pick a place anyone can easily access safely at any time of day. 
• Avoid areas with high crime or high vehicle traffic. 
• Places with high foot traffic, like street corners with sidewalks, are particularly good, but don’t place Little Free structures on easements or aprons between the sidewalk and street. In addition, avoid placing them behind gates or walls.
• Choosing a place with tree cover can keep midday sun at bay during the hottest times of the year. If you live in a particularly hot location, position the Little Free structure so it faces north or east. 
• LFFs need a nearby power source.

Step 3: Build Your LFP or LFF

Little Free Pantry has created both a comprehensive materials list and step-by-step assembly guides for the actual construction of your LFP if you need guidance, but you can build and decorate your storage space in any way you choose. 

• Make sure you build for longevity, as people will likely be opening and closing it several times a day, in all types of weather conditions, all year round. 
• Make sure wood is sanded down completely and free of splinters. 
• Use several coats of paint, and seal the edges and corners.
• Use caulk to prevent water from leaking into the structure.
• LFFs may be as big as full-sized refrigerators, or just a large drink cooler with a consistent cooling mechanism. 
• Unlike LFPs, LFFs need to be plugged in, so budget for that expense either personally or with contributions from the neighborhood.
• Both LFPs and LFFs should be painted brightly and clearly labeled so that everyone knows they are welcome to take advantage of the service.

Step 4: Keep it stocked and cleaned

It’s important to keep your Little Free structure filled and accessible to the public. This is where community buy-in and contributions come in handy (see step 5). 

• LFPs should be stocked with cans, boxes, and bags of non-perishable items. 
• Keep an eye on seasonal changes and weather conditions that could cause some items (like peanut butter or chocolate) to melt or freeze. 
• LFFs can house produce and refrigerated items, though fresh meats and dairy often aren’t allowed in LFFs because they can contaminate other foods.
• In addition to food, some LFPs keep a supply of hygiene products like toilet paper and toothpaste as well as household items like sponges and laundry detergent on hand. Others use them to make kid-friendly items and school supplies available. Depending on your community’s needs and the size of your LFP, these might be worthwhile additions for your neighborhood.
• Because this is a community effort, no donation is too small. All those single cans of beans and packages of spaghetti add up! Your neighborhood can boost its bounty by taking advantage of buy-one-get-one deals at the grocery store.
• Maintenance of the Little Free structure is also important. Request that people note the day of donation on the items they drop off (which is particularly important for refrigerated items), but don’t expect everybody to do this. 
• Encourage the community to keep the Little Free structure in good condition by keeping it organized and discarding any items that are damaged or have gone bad. 
• Make sure it is cleaned at least once a week, especially if it receives a lot of traffic.

Step 5: Spread the word

Don’t expect your LFP or LFF to fill itself. 

• Let your neighbors know you plan to install one so they know what to expect once it’s made available to the public. 
• Encourage them to support the site by stocking it, caring for its upkeep, and using it when they need it. 
• Little Free Pantries created both a “Coming to Your Neighborhood” flier and “How Does This LFP Work” flier that you can use to help educate your community about this initiative.
• Reach out to local cafés, restaurants, and grocery stores, and let them know about the Little Free structure as well. They may have additional restrictions regarding donating leftover or extra food, but it doesn’t hurt to make them aware of the LFP or LFF in the neighborhood. After all, it takes a community to support a community!

This guide was originally published on April 15, 2021 and was updated on July 3, 2024.

Related story: How to create a free farm stand in your community

Little Free Pantries Go Viral

The post How to create a little free community pantry or fridge appeared first on Shareable.

Despite this, the federal minimum wage remains locked in at $7.25 an hour — a rate that hasn’t increased since 2009 — and while wages have been increasing, they aren’t keeping pace with the cost of living. 

Meanwhile, the mitigation and management of excessive waste is a concurrent issue. As the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic wane, families who are downsizing their lives or cleaning out their closets face the challenge of finding a new home for their excess stuff — or simply dumping it in a landfill.

How can these two groups of people be connected — filling the accessibility gap for some while offering an environmentally friendly waste management solution for others? In some communities, the answer lies in free stores.

The beauty — and necessity — of the free store 

A former dumpster diver concerned with the environmental footprint of waste, Gisele Fetterman founded Free Store 15104 in 2012 in Braddock, Pennsylvania, to facilitate these exchanges in a dignified, mutually beneficial space. The free store, which operates out of three decommissioned shipping containers, is open three days a week.

If you ask, you shall receive, meaning that a lot of the answers to people’s needs are already in the community. — Gisele Fetterman, Free Store 15104 founder

Free stores are exactly what they sound like: Physical places where people can donate items they no longer want and others can shop among these items and take what they want or need without paying cash for them.

Items donated include everything from household items and small appliances to furniture, food, toys, and cleaning supplies, depending on a specific store’s physical capacity and purpose. 

Differing models for differing needs

Operating models vary as widely as the items they carry and the clientele they serve. Free Store 15104, for example, is open to anyone without any restrictions or obligations.

In Porirua, New Zealand, a local free store operates in a similar, yet slightly differing, capacity. Originally an online distribution space, Free For All recently opened their brick-and-mortar shop, charging a small entry fee for prospective shoppers, who are able to pick up as many items as they want or need. Pennsylvania’s Free Store Wilkinsburg has both an item and time limitation for shoppers.

The FreeStore in Nashville, Tennessee, has a membership program that allows people to choose a set number of color-coded items when they shop. 

Free stores as community infrastructure

Expanding on the original free store model, the Free Store Project, which was founded in New York City during the pandemic, is a series of 24-hour pop-up shops similar to Little Free Libraries or Little Free Pantries.

At the intersection of shuttered storefronts and a mass exodus of people from the city (and, therefore, an excess of discarded items), founder Myles Smutney saw an opportunity to support people who were out of work and waiting on COVID-19 income relief payments.

During [the beginning] stage of the pandemic, lots of people were trapped inside. They had made their sourdough starters and done their spring cleaning, so I had a lot of friends who had bags of things to donate. — Myles Smutney, Free Store Project founder

At one time, there were 15 pop-up shops in the Free Store Project community. Today, there are three shops, and Smutney is currently working on building a more sustainable model with partners, such as a school located near where one of the remaining free stores stands. “With strategic partners, we can grow and expand and recreate the magic of what we’ve already done,” she said.

Connecting for greater impact

Indeed, strategic partnerships are a vital part of many of these operating models. At Free Store 15104, for example, local partners like Costco and Trader Joe’s, donate fresh food items when the store is open.

An ongoing partnership with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) keeps the store stocked with high-demand infant products.

Every time AEW comes to town, they collect formula and diapers for us. When the rest of the country was struggling with formula, we never ran out of it. — Gisele Fetterman

Free stores are also beneficiaries of bulk donations of perfectly functional items that fail to meet brands’ quality-control standards, such as clothing items with misspelled words on interior tags and toys with slightly damaged exterior packaging. In the United States, where more than 292 million tons of waste is created each year (approximately 4.9 pounds per person per day) free stores offer a solution for extending the life of good-quality, useable items — some of which are brand new.

Meeting the needs of those in transition 

While free stores offer a dignified way for cash-strapped folks to shop for common household items, they’re also an important resource for those going through transition periods in their lives. People reentering society after leaving prison or those who abruptly leave abusive relationships often lack the financial means to furnish their lives from scratch. 

The FreeStore in Des Moines, Iowa, for example, serves more than 250 families a year only through referrals from social service agencies, so its clients are primarily victims of domestic abuse, veterans, women returning from prison, and youth aging out of foster care.

The shopping experience at the FreeStore’s warehouse is safe and comfortable and includes a suggested list of items to set up a home and time with a volunteer to think through new living situations. 

“We talk about the size of their apartment or home and the age and sex of the children to find items that will fit, and appropriate colors and bedding,” said Diane Munns, chair of FreeStore’s Board of Directors. “Clients are extremely appreciative of the goods, the opportunity to pick out things they like, and the help in delivering to their new home.

[Starting over] can be overwhelming for anyone, and we try very hard to make it enjoyable and stress-free. — Diane Munns, chair of FreeStore’s Board of Directors

Some universities (like the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana) also operate free stores that serve the transitory needs of incoming and graduating students while also helping them minimize their environmental footprint.

Lasting, communal impact

People shopping at free stores do so for different reasons, but the ethos of these stores creates unique conditions for connection. As Fetterman said, free stores are “spaces that bring people together.” And though at first glance, the model may seem ripe for exploitation, it turns out the very opposite seems to be true.

“Everyone asks if they’ve been vandalized, and the answer is no,” Smutney said. “The people who pass by are our volunteers. They live on the block. They’re the same people you see at the grocery store. You know that it’s cared for by the community, and you know it’s kind of cool, so no one is messing them up.”

The localized nature of the operation, gives people a sense of purpose and ownership, Smutney explained. “It’s a really simple way to care,” she said. “It’s a small way to be an active part of your community.”

The post How free stores fight waste, connect communities and foster resilience appeared first on Shareable.

“Even in this room with all these other people, you could feel the emotional transference. You could see it on people’s faces, even on camera. You could see the impact it was having on people,” Lally said. 

This was clearly not an ordinary conversation, and the 16 people in the Zoom room weren’t just passive participants. They were “reading” a “book” on “loan” from the Human Library. 

“The Human Library provides some of the most stigmatized groups in the community with a chance to be unjudged,” said Ronni Abergel, CEO and head of administration for the Copenhagen-based non-profit organization. “We’re not fighting for diversity. We’re a safe space to explore it.”

Their mission was reflected in Lally’s experience: “You could see she wasn’t just a survivor of domestic abuse. She was a mother, she was a sister, she was someone’s daughter. She was part of the bigger family of human beings,” Abergel said.   

We’re not fighting for diversity. We’re a safe space to explore it. — Ronni Abergel, CEO and head of administration for The Human Library

Established in 2000 by Abergel, his brother Dany, and colleagues Asma Mouna and Christoffer Erichsen, the Human Library is a global initiative that merges curiosity, understanding, and acceptance among people with a traditional library framework. In any Human Library depot (or, currently, during organized virtual events) average people (“readers”) can request to have a conversation with (“read”) someone who identifies in a particular way. Readers “check out” these “human books” for a “loan period of 30 minutes. 

Human books cover a wide range of identities and experiences: They are people who deal with alcoholism, housing insecurity , and post-traumatic stress disorder. They have autism and epilepsy. They are refugees, naturists and Holocaust survivors. They are unemployed, single parents, and polyamorous. Regardless of their backgrounds, how they identify, or what their life experiences have been, the Human Library’s overarching message is this: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”

“It’s a tremendous opportunity for some of these books because most of their lives, they were maybe not included or not invited or deselected, or maybe even hated upon, because of who they are, so I’m keen to see them utilize their stigma as a competence,” Abergel said.

Readers are welcome to ask any questions they want (as long as they’re respectful), and books openly and honestly answer those questions without judgment. “There is an element of discomfort with this,” Abergel said, “because sometimes we’ll be talking about difficult issues, big taboos, and challenging stigmas and stereotypes that need us to be very personal and open and also take some responsibility for the fact we all have unconscious biases and they impact our decision making, especially our social navigation.”

Change happens with a dialogue, not a monologue. — participant, Mindy Kelley

Research has shown storytelling has the capacity to engage, influence, teach, and inspire listeners, but Abergel emphasizes that even though books engage readers with their stories, the Human Library isn’t about storytelling. Rather, it’s the two-way, conversation-based format that makes the Human Library so powerful. “Progress doesn’t happen by reading a traditional book,” said Mindy Kelley, who recently attended a virtual reading. “Change happens with a dialogue, not a monologue.”

Abergel has been committed to the Human Library’s potential as an ecosystem that enables conversation since its inception. “I realized the first day of the idea that this could have global implication and be embedded in any society around the world,” he said. “I just didn’t know if it would work.” In their first decade, the Human Library operated under an unsustainable “pop-up” model without standard protocols. This led to them attracting partners and participants that didn’t respect books or the concept. 

Today, there are book depots in more than 50 countries and local publishing partners in 80 countries. The Human Library now has a licensing process with specific quality and content criteria. Regardless of where in the world they are located, human books go through an application, interview, and training process so they are properly prepared to go into circulation. “We are not in a rush,” Abergel said. “We want to do this properly, care for our books, and create the right opportunity for readers.”

The exact number of books in circulation is unknown, though Abergel estimates 20,000 to 25,000 people globally are published in a given year. In Copenhagen, for example, there is a book depot with almost 200 editions. In Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest city, there are 55 editions. With the addition of two smaller book depots, the country has more than 300 editions in circulation. The Human Library held about 100 events in Denmark in 2021, including a book tour that visited parts of the country without access to book depots.

Books are volunteers and the Human Library accommodates their availability, so like any library, readers off the street never know what editions might be available when they stop in. Their life cycles vary, and books can take themselves out of circulation at any time. The Human Library is always interested in expanding its collection; an online application is available for anyone interested in becoming a book.

Like many non-profit organizations, the Human Library has struggled with funding over the years. Because it doesn’t address any single issue or exist for any single group of people, the organization doesn’t qualify for highly focused funding opportunities. 

However, in 2016, the organization recognized an opportunity to leverage funding for development and growth in civil society by working with corporations, including well-known international brands like Heineken, Tesco, and Procter & Gamble. The Human Library offers these companies a new approach to diversity, equity, and inclusion training by hosting reading hall events with books and even training internal human bookshelves within companies. 

Corporate work enables the Human Library’s outreach in communities, but these partnerships also have the potential to accelerate and amplify the Human Library’s mission. “Who can have great impact on society and making change if not decision makers and leaders?” Abergel said. “If we can get leaders to engage with this and learn from us, we’re actually impacting a lot more than we would if we were open in the public community library, where it’s random people that show up.”

The Human Library’s most recent challenge, of course, has been adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic. Early in the pandemic, all in-person events were cancelled and the organization transitioned to a virtual model. Initially, Abergel said, “I believed that digital distancing would be a barrier for us.” However, this online environment gives readers a chance to leave if they feel uncomfortable, and, though the technology is a barrier for some books and readers, the Human Library has become a more accessible space for most people because they can participate in readings from anywhere in the world.

“Here I was, sitting in my living room in the United States along with three other readers — one in the UK, one in Israel, and one fellow American — as we all listened intently to a book about a Holocaust survivor from the Netherlands,” Kelley said. “Reading this book was intimate, gut wrenching, beautiful, raw, and educational. Essentially all the emotions in the most respectful of settings.”

Despite initial hesitations about moving to virtual readings, the Human Library recognizes its potential and is launching a digital service in 2022. This nearly on-demand service will allow readers with library cards to browse a board noting books “publishing” soon. If any pique their interest, they can join other readers in a virtual ecosystem with a limited seating capacity for a reading.

With this expansion, the Human Library will be able to reach even more readers, which is one of the organization’s long-term goals. Their larger goal is to continue helping  people around the world work together to form community and address global challenges. “I think our key role is to ensure sustainability, availability, and access and then it will grow,” Abergel said. “It will be something you get used to, and it will be a place you go to when you need information about things that aren’t easily accessible elsewhere and you need to hear it from the horse’s mouth.”

Lally agrees. “The Human Library has the potential to tackle online and in-person social isolation and social exclusion through informal education,” she said. “This human connection and the shared experience — I’m not sure you can put a price on it.”

Check out these related articles:

• Why creating community-led project spaces can ease social isolation
• How Libraries of Things build resilience, fight climate change, and bring communities together
• How community involvement can counter our loneliness crisis

The post The Human Library connects people by tackling stigma and isolation appeared first on Shareable.

• Amazon warehouse workers are fighting for longer breaks, better medical leave options, and higher wages.
• Netflix employees recently walked out in solidarity with their transgender colleagues in response to how the company handled a Dave Chappelle special. 
• And though Uber and Lyft drivers won a brief victory when the California Superior Court ruled that Proposition 22, which defines app-based drivers as independent contractors, was unconstitutional and unenforceable, the ruling has been appealed, Prop 22 still remains in effect, and the battle rideshare drivers face is far from over.

Grassroots efforts fighting for workers’ rights isn’t new, but the lack of care and support, particularly for gig and hourly workers in the tech industry, has become increasingly obvious over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fight can feel lonely and hopeless against multi-billion-dollar tech enterprises like Amazon, Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, and Instacart. But organizers don’t have to go it alone — the Solidarity Fund is in their corner. 

According to Jess Kutch, executive director of the Solidarity Fund, the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic have spurred a wave of new labor organizing. 

“In my lifetime, there’s never been this kind of broad, popular support for the labor movement and workers’ rights,” she said. “Where employers put profit above people’s health and safety, there is a general feeling of workers needing more of a collective voice.”

Formally established as a 501(c)(4) social-welfare organization in 2020, the Solidarity Fund offers legal, financial, and strategic support for worker-activists organizing to improve their companies.

The fund operates under the umbrella of Coworker.org, a nonprofit organization that helps workers organize and win improvements in their jobs and workplaces by providing support and leadership development to workers across a variety of industries. The Solidarity Fund has its own board of directors, though the two organizations currently share staff.

“People need training, connections, and direct financial support as they engage in workplace activism and organizing,” Kutch said. “There is so much to do, and no one currently has the resources to meet the demand.” 

Such is that case for the Solidarity Fund. When the organization took applications for its first round of support for worker organizing in December 2020, its available funds were exhausted in less than two weeks. 

Call it a success, though. In total, the initial pilot program raised and distributed more than $120,000 to 50 people in the form of $2,500 stipends, paying for organizing assistance — and also a financial lifeline for workers on the frontlines. 

“When this grant came in, it was kind of a saving grace for us,” said Erica Mighetto, a stipend recipient and Lyft driver, who began organizing in May 2019. At the time, she was participating in Lyft’s rental program, which required paying for the car she drove for Lyft, dealing with multiple repair issues, and chasing bonuses in order to pay for her vehicle. 

“I was just fed up, so I took to the internet looking for Lyft or Uber drivers who were having similar experiences and feeling mistreated,” she said.

Mighetto discovered a community at Rideshare Drivers United, one of the many groups organizing in response to treatment of workers by tech companies. 

The tech industry “is known for giving a lot of perks to the workers and high-income levels, so there is an assumption — or at least there used to be an assumption — that workers in that industry didn’t have a reason to organize to build worker power,” said Antonio Aguilera, director of worker resources and training for Coworker.org. 

The Solidarity Fund specifically grew out of Coworker.org’s support for tech workers organizing on issues such as ethics, inclusion and equity. Liz Fong Jones, a former Google employee, co-founded the Fund and provided the seeding funding for the first round of $2,500 worker stipends. 

These were made available on an application basis to people who currently or formerly worked in the tech industry, regardless of job function. 

“Liz wanted to find a way to financially support people who were taking collective action in their workplaces and facing possible retaliation for their efforts,” Kutch said. 

The Solidarity Fund is currently raising enough money to cover five more awards before reopening the portal and accepting new applicants for the pilot fund. 

“While our pilot fund is focused specifically on people working in tech, we plan to raise and distribute funding for workers in a variety of industries and workplace settings,” Kutch said. She noted that fundraising remains her organization’s “greatest challenge.” 

Aguilera, who has worked for Coworker.org for about three years, said those working in the tech industry are markedly different from activist workers in other industries. 

“They have been told in their companies that they are leaders in their companies, that they should be involved in making decisions, especially companies like Google or Apple,” he said. 

Yet, over time, it’s become clear that the processes that supposedly give workers a voice actually do the opposite. 

“Those mechanisms were kind of in place to suppress their actual voices and not give a lot of room for dissent,” he said.

As a rideshare driver, Mighetto said her biggest challenge was decreased pay while working against ever-increasing expectations. 

“We would receive an email that said ‘we’ve been listening to your concerns and so we’ve made some changes to the app that will help you,’ and inevitably that would be a falsehood,” she said. “I have never worked for a company where my reward for good work is constant pay cuts.”

On the heels of its pilot fund, the Solidarity Fund recently launched the Emergency Fund for Workers at Netflix and Apple to assist workers at those companies facing retaliation for organizing and advocating for better conditions. 

Within just a few days of launching, more than 150 people had contributed more than $45,000 to the fund. 

Kutch said the short-term goal is to continue to raise and distribute funding for these fights. Long term, the organization hopes to partner with workers to launch funds across industries and workplace settings. Mutual-aid models, she said, “have the potential to generate critical revenue for worker organizing.” 

In addition to financial support, Coworker.org also provides coaching for organizers. 

Aguilara explained that this “leadership development process” supports workers that are leading organizing inside tech companies. 

Future programs beyond funding include helping people access legal expertise. Access to this type of non-monetary support while organizing is essential for helping workers navigate the complicated grassroots world of activism.

“More than 93 percent of private sector workers in the United States do not belong to a union,” Kutch said, “and the majority of those people have never experienced collective action in their workplace.”

Going up against the likes of Lyft, Amazon, Google, and Apple is, at times, an uphill battle. But, one stipend, one voice, and one protest at a time, the Solidarity Fund is helping workers win the fight against tech companies. 

“We are seeing that we do make an impact,” Mighetto said. “We are showing our power. We are getting out there. We are making a difference in this industry.”

Check out these related articles on worker organizing and mutual aid:

• How nonprofits are organizing tech workers for social change
• How to set up a mutual aid fund
• ‘Solidarity investing’ club helps plant a new crop of co-ops in Vermont

The post The Solidarity Fund is helping labor organizers take on Big Tech appeared first on Shareable.

What people want and need — and what they have to offer in return — are as varied and diverse as people themselves. Connecting people across this complicated web of needs and desires is exactly the challenge have|need, a new bartering app is attempting to address — a task other bartering companies and sales platforms like Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, Nextdoor, and Craigslist have failed in the past.

“The answer to what I saw as the problems of not having a successful bartering company to date were that none of them had implemented a multi-party barter architecture. This addresses the core friction point of barter, which economists refer to as the mutual coincidence of wants,” said Josh Kline, founder, and CEO of have|need. In other words, if you and your neighbor don’t want what the other person has, no barter will take place. But the more people involved in the bartering process, the more likely you are to find someone to give your item to while receiving something in return from someone else.

Here’s how it works: Say you have a guitar you don’t need anymore, but you want a snowboard. You post what you have (the guitar) and what you need (a snowboard) on the app. As a multi-party barter platform, have|need surfaces the following information: 

• Person A wants to get rid of a snowboard but is looking for someone to teach her Spanish lessons.
• Person B can teach Spanish lessons and is looking for someone to design his website. 
• Person C designs websites and is in the market to buy a guitar.

Through have|need, this four-person web of people can easily find and exchange products and services with each other. This trust-based bartering system is a win-win-win process: Each person saves time trying to find buyers for the items they want to sell. They save money because they don’t have to buy new items to fulfill what they want. And they minimize the environmental impact brought on by the cycle of overconsumption and waste creation.

Most people don’t need to look beyond their own communities to see the value in such a platform. Even before the COVID-19 crisis, 63% of Americans didn’t have $500 to cover an emergency. Since early 2020, people around the world — from Jerusalem to Kent — have been bartering to get by. 

The model is also good for the environment: Only 1% of goods purchased are still in use after six months. The clutter crisis is particularly pervasive in the United States, where 20% of the population pays for self-storage units. “The old phrase is ‘one person’s trash is another’s person’s treasure,’” Kline said. “Something may have no value to me, but it’s very valuable to somebody else. Let’s push that item back into the community and get it to someone who needs it as opposed to throwing it away.”

Coming out of the Silicon Valley startup scene and eager to develop a globally focused, impact-based company, Kline has been building have|need full time since 2017. It is on this global scale that Kline saw enormous potential when designing have|need’s bartering model: “We’ve got a couple of billion new users coming online who have smartphones and internet connections but little or no money,” he said. “What kind of services can you provide to users in developing economies around the world or immigrant populations in developed economies that will increase the quality of their lives?”

But the platform was also born out of a personal need: As a father, Kline struggles keep his growing teenage son affordably outfitted with equipment for sports and hobbies, something other parents understand as well: “We have three children and they are constantly growing and they are trying new activities such as skateboarding, surfing, horse riding, and keyboard lessons,” said Natalie Stafford-Smith. “It would be great to be able to trade school, sports, and music equipment, to mention a few, with other families within the local community. This is something I already do with a small group of mums within my circle of friends, but it would be so helpful to have a wider reach.”

Stafford-Smith, a resident of Laurel Canyon, California, will be part of have|need’s beta test group, which will launch by mid-February of this year. During this trial period, users will download an iOS app, use a Facebook login for personal identification verification, and be placed in private groups to trade with each other. The full launch, expected to take place this summer, will include an app-specific digital login separate from Facebook and be available for Android users as well. 

In addition to individual use, Kline sees opportunities for charities and organizations to connect with potential donors for non-monetary donations of goods and services. For example, schools facing severe budget cuts to charities feeling the COVID-19 squeeze can take advantage of the flexibility built into this exchange of products and services that isn’t restricted the way periodic donor-specific communications are. Because users can list wants and needs, only wants, only needs, or simply browse the platform, they can respond at any time to help organizations or individuals with specific needs.

“I often wonder if the items I donate, often beloved pieces of clothing my children have grown out of, actually reach a person who needs them,” Stafford-Smith said. “As we hear of stories that donation centers get overwhelmed, have|need would certainly give me the peace of mind that my item is making it directly into someone’s hands.”

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But for those businesses that have continued to survive — and even thrive — the lifeline that has largely kept them afloat over the past several months has been supporting each other. 

Though a myriad of unknowns still surrounds the coronavirus, what is known is this: Working together has helped many small business owners weather this unparalleled time. Small businesses across a variety of industries are sharing leads, offering advice and encouragement, swapping skills, cross-promoting each other’s work, and, most importantly, building a sense of community among peers in place of competition. What they’ve learned over the past several months offers a blueprint for a more resilient, more collaborative small business ecosystem — even in a post-pandemic world.

Be Generous

From boutique shops to dance classes, small business owners work across every industry, but many share similar struggles, concerns, and questions. “I was on a call early in the pandemic, and someone said, ‘There’s got to be a way for us to swap skills and help each other.’ And I thought, ‘Yes, there has,” said Rachel Hayward, one of six co-founders of Derby Swap Shop, an online skill-swapping marketplace that launched May 4. With a free account, users can ask for specific services they need, such as having a press release written or review of a LinkedIn profile, along with a specific service (or willingness to consider various offers) in return.

“The whole idea of this was to harness one’s collective connections regardless of location, and the fact that we couldn’t speak to each in the normal face-to-face to help each other with practical things so that you could keep your business going at a time when it was the most challenging,” she said. To date, Derby Swap Shop has had 90 posted swaps with noted success. “We’ve had people who have swapped and gone on to have great exposure, increased turnover into their business, and paid work for each of them,” Hayward said.

Embrace the Unknown

COVID-19 showed that even the best-laid plans can be turned upside down. Working together can be nerve-wracking as well, especially because it requires trust and a time investment in partners you may not know well. “You need to be more flexible than you might think,” said Natalie Moores, co-founder of Mac + Moore, a marketing consultancy. 

Her company abandoned its typical fee structure for a client on the verge of launching a program when the client’s investor pulled out due to COVID-19. Moores and co-founder Jess MacIntyre, who knew the client in a peripheral capacity, agreed to move forward on the launch for backdated payments and a small number of shares, realizing the program might not take off. “As you are potentially navigating unchartered waters, things can move and change at a fast pace, and you have to be accommodating of that,” Moores said.

Be Specific with Your Needs

Collaborators need to be transparent and specific about their needs and expectations. “If you’re forging something that goes against the normal way you’d do business, you need to make sure it benefits both sides,” Moores said. “If you can be open, honest, and clear about how the collaboration will work, what the boundaries are, and make sure you’re all on the same page about expectations, things are likely to run much more smoothly.”

Watching the Derby Swap Shop grow from day one, Hayward notes the willingness to help and receive help was better received when needs and skills are detailed. “For example, you’d say ‘I need some help with WordPress.’ The more specific you are, the better,” she said.

Communication is Key

Like any good relationship, being open and honest about collaborative work is essential. “Having lots of conversations about what you want to do is key, learning from each other’s experiences, and getting to know each other’s businesses,” said Lisa Smith, founder, and owner of Ginger Bakers. Located in Cumbria in northwest England, her business has worked with Rinaldo’s Specialty Tea & Coffee in various capacities over the years, but the pandemic led to additional collaboration in gift box packages sold online. “Be realistic with deadlines. Joint working inevitably takes longer than you think,” she said.

Even in uncertain times — or perhaps because of it — maintaining communication is particularly important. “Remember that you’re all still people even when you’re working in a professional framework, so picking up the phone or logging onto Zoom rather than relying solely on email can go a long way,” Moores said.

Build Resistance Before Disaster

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 20% of new businesses fail during the first two years of being open, and many business owners likely eye the competition with a mix of fear and suspicion. But building bridges with competitors before you’re in dire straits establishes a solid foundation built on trust that you can lean on in difficult times.

Rachel Charlupski, owner of The Babysitting Company, which offers hotel and event babysitting in southern Florida, noted her industry is very competitive. This pandemic was the first time that some of these companies engaged with each other, but they’ve found an opportunity to support and refer business to each other when certain businesses don’t offer specific services or can’t accommodate certain requests. “This is a very strong group of businesswomen who are also good people, good business owners, and want the best for their companies and clients, many of which we share,” she said. “One thing I learned is that we are not enemies, and we can help each other. I can not believe it took 15 years to start our group.”

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