Import/Export: 2 Oct 2009

Asda: Barter Boards

Having looked at a back to basics trading system with local currency like the Brixton Pound, I wanted to look at the idea of paying for goods/services without currency in a true back to basics way. This is how I came across the Asda barter boards.

In September 2008 an Asda store in Colne, Lancashire became the first supermarket store in the UK to create a bartering scheme, where customers could exchange skills and services for free. The barter boards came as part of the supermarket's local week, where customers are provided with freshly sourced local produce. However due to the recession they decided to also create a bartering scheme.

The Lancashire Telegraph explain, "The boards, set up by Asda’s general store manager Mark Edwards, offer people the chance to share their skills and cut costs using barter, which founded many of Britain’s original markets. Customers can use the board to trade services and skills. Some examples include piano lessons being exchanged for guitar lessons and someone offering gardening services for a patio. Customers can leave personal details such as phone numbers but for security reasons are advised not to leave addresses."

The store manager also added, "Mr Edwards said: “We understand that our customers are feeling the pinch right now and as well as keeping our prices low, we decided to provide a community service that wasn’t for our profit but for local people to work together and beat the credit crisis. The barter boards are not only a way for customers to save money but are a return to traditional British community values. Colne is a real community store and Lancashire has a great history of trade, so it seemed the perfect place to let customers try their hand at bartering.”

Due to the local success of the scheme Asda is planning to continue the scheme next year at a larger number of stores. I could see this working outside of Asda stores and outside of the UK because it allows people achieve more by working together. While this way of trading has become outdated there are also advantages to it. It allows us to trade our time and skills, which are things that we do not normally do, instead we would hire professional help. However the barter boards simply give us another option and allow us to essentially pay with time instead of money.

An organisation like Asda would be essential to the idea. The whole scheme relies on trust so a third party to run and organise the system gives people confidence to trade with others. An idea like this is not for everyone. Time is such a precious commodity today that many do not have the time to spare. The more affluent might already pay someone for such skills and services and have little desire to offer something in return. In cultures where status is important it may not be such an attractive prospect to be seen providing services for someone of a lower class, however for many ordinary people this would be an excellent way to save some time, money or just help out in the local community.

The Brixton Pound

The Brixton Pound is a new local currency that can only be exchanged for goods in the Brixton area. It is a complimentary currency which means that its aim is not to rival the Pound Sterling, but to work with it in an attempt to increase trade for independent retailers in the area. When I first heard about the new currency I assumed that you would be able to get more for your money by using the new currency, but this is not the case.

The creators of the Brixton pound explain "If you’re a local business, the B£ benefits you by:Promoting your business through the B£ leaflets and website, helping you to find local suppliers, or to supply other local businesses and adding to positive perceptions of Brixton’s strong community and diverse economy.

If you’re a local shopper, the B£ benefits you by bringing you special offers exclusive to B£ users, ensuring that more of the money you spend in Brixton stays here, helping local businesses thrive in the face of recession and fierce competition from chain stores and working to reduce Brixton’s carbon footprint by supplying more of its needs locally"

Essentially the Brixton Pound is more an awareness campaign for shoppers to support the area's local businesses and independent retailers through a difficult period, with the money being more a local gift voucher than a real currency. But the new currency could create a sense of unity between Brixton residents and see people taking more pride in their local area.

The Brixton Pound is the first use of a local currency in in an urban area in the modern day. However experiments with local currencies have taken place before. BBC News reports ""A local economy is like a leaky bucket. Wealth is generated then spent in chain stores and businesses. It disappears leaving an impoverished local economy," explains Ben Brangwyn, part of the team behind the Totnes Pound, launched in south Devon in 2007.

"Local money prevents that from happening and keeps the money bouncing around the bucket, building wealth and prosperity." Currently, 6,000 Totnes pounds are in circulation from an estimated local economy of £60m.
It is, stresses Mr Brangwyn, a radical experiment, still in its very early stages, but he can see a day when England has 2,000 local currencies. Other towns joining the experiment, started by environmental group Transition Network, are Lewes in East Sussex and Stroud in Gloucestershire."

The idea does feel like something that would be more likely to work in small close knit communities than in Brixton however this does not mean it will not work. Whilst many are skeptical of the new currency, it is optional. No one can force you to take your change in the B£, whilst the people who wish to support their local economy can do so, ensuring that their money stays in the area.

A limitation of the idea would be trying to introduce a local currency into severely deprived areas, where many people cannot afford to support independent retailers and will travel outside of town to find cheaper goods. Being able to choose where you spend your money can be considered a luxury. Another problem is that there is no financial incentive, which may not motivate people in certain areas. The idea could be a problem if executed on a global scale because every small town would be trading in different currencies and purchasing could become confusing if you lived on the borders of two different areas.

Whilst the idea has been labelled a brain child of the middle classes, if the people of Brixton are really passionate about supporting local trade then the idea will work. If it is to work over time in a mixed demographic area like Brixton then it could prove that the idea in theory could work right across the world.

Official promo video for the Brixton Pound

The Brixton Pound discussed on the BBC Politics Show

Pizza Hut: Book It

Pizza Hut's Book It scheme is an incentive scheme that has been running for 25 years in the USA, Canada and Puerto Rico. The program reaches out to 50,000 schools in the US and 22 million children, encouraging them to read with the reward of a free pizza for their efforts, if they can achieve individual targets set by their teacher.

"The Book It program was first started in 1985. It runs from The 1st Of October to the 31st of March every year and is focused on children from K through 6th grade. It also has a program which runs two months each year for preschool aged children. It encourages children to read at least 20 minutes a day. Teachers involved in the program set a monthly reading goal. When the child reaches that goal, they receive a coupon redeemable for a free personal pan pizza."

While some people have criticised the program for encouraging children to eat pizza when child obesity is on the rise and the fact that children are receiving a commercially sponsored education, I feel that the incentive of a class being able to go for a pizza at the end of term is something that would have really spurred me on. Whether it pushes children to read an extra few pages a night, or encourages them to help their class mates with their reading, I believe this is a worthwhile idea that could really work if implemented in the UK.

However the idea of certain incentives for learning is something that could be used all around the world where willing sponsors exist. One consideration when taking a scheme like this across the world would be the incentive offered to children. For example Pizza Hut would not be such a popular incentive outside of Western culture, where this style of food is less prominent. But the idea of giving kids incentives and rewards for working hard in the classroom is something I would like to see implemented wider than just North America. I certainly wish it was implemented in the UK whilst I was at school.

Kim
Westminster, MD
Favorite book(s) as kid: Island of the Blue Dolphins
"My family didn't have a lot of money, so when I received my free book it pizza, it meant my family went out for the night. Mom and Dad could get a sandwich or split a pizza themselves and I got my own personal pan pizza. It was incredibly fun. It was a great reward and a good memory."

Yasmeen
Seattle, WA
Favorite book(s) as kid: Julie of the Wolves
Everything about the BOOK IT! Program, but especially the status afforded by donning the jumbo hologram button (it's proudly displayed in my bookcase today, more than 15 years later!). Getting to finally wear the button on my jean jacket was like a modern-day rite of passage as a budding bookworm. Equally memorable was driving home from Pizza Hut, in the back of my folks' Chevrolet, with a hot personal pan pizza on my lap. I practically was on a first-name basis with the Pizza Hut employees in Columbus, Georgia. Pride for me back then was wearing my BOOK IT! button and redeeming countless personal pan pizza vouchers.

http://www.bookitprogram.com

Bellenden Big Lunch

"The Bellenden Big Lunch was held on Sunday 19th July 2009 as part of the national Big Lunch initiated by the Eden Project and supported by the Government. http://www.thebiglunch.com It was organised in Bellenden Road by local residents within the Bellenden area (several streets around Bellenden Road). Bellenden Road was closed to traffic between Oxenford Street and Avondale Rise. The event ran between midday and finished about 5.30pm. Some of the shops in Bellenden Road shopping Parade further along the road also took part in various ways."

This was a really nice idea that took place as part of UK wide scheme to bring back a sense of community spirit to local neighborhoods. I actually live just off of the Bellenden Road which is one of the main shopping streets in the Peckham Rye area. Since living in South London I have noticed how little interaction there is between neighbors in the street and I felt that this was a simple but effective way of bringing people together and getting to know the people in the community.

Local shops and neighbors from the surrounding areas contributed sharing food, music games etc and made it a really successful day that I feel could definitely work in other countries, especially in major cities where there is a lack of community spirit and neighbor interaction and become more than just a one off event.

The event actually took place on Bellenden Road (not Bellenden Street) in Peckham (not South Camberwell) but nonetheless it received coverage on the BBC.