The 43rd Annual Macromarketing Conference will take place in Leipzig – Germany from 10 to 13th July, 2018.
We are pleased to confirm that we are chairing a track on ‘Challenges and opportunities in the sharing economy’ at the next Macromarketing Conference.
If your research falls into this area, please submit a paper/abstract to our track (please e-mail to track organiser). Could you also please disseminate the call for papers to your network, promote via your institutions and social media and encourage colleagues and PhD students to consider this track and conference? We can recommend the conference and Leipzig is a great place to visit too.
Deadline for full paper (8,000-12,000 words including everything) or extended abstract (1,000 words) submissions is 31st January 2018.
Track Title: Challenges and opportunities in the sharing economy
Track Chairs
Dr Nicole Koenig-Lewis* (Track Organiser), Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University,
Email: koenig-lewisn@cardiff.ac.uk
Prof Sabine Benoit, Surrey Business School, University of Surrey, s.benoit@surrey.ac.uk
Dr Kristina Wittkowski, School of Business, Aalto University, kristina.wittkowski@aalto.fi
Dr Carmela Bosangit, Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University,BosangitC@cardiff.ac.uk
Whilst the idea of reusing and sharing goods is not new, internet based platforms have considerably lowered the transaction costs of sharing and reusing products. Websites such as eBay and Gumtree facilitate the development of markets for reused products, and platforms such as ‘The Library of Things’ and ‘We love bricks’ facilitate the sharing of goods and toys. Buying, selling and renting pre-owned goods is becoming more socially acceptable (Mont & Heiskanen, 2015) and this phenomena will inevitably affect many industries and companies reshaping the current marketplace. Furthermore, there is some evidence that a new generation of customers are shifting away from standard models of ownership to valuing access to goods and skills (Ellen Macarthur Foundation, 2015). Ownership has become less central to identities (Kathan, Matzler & Veider, 2016) as well as less attainable and precarious (Cheshire, Walters & Rosenblatt, 2010). In the sharing economy, consumers can obtain access to products without ownership and are allowed to pool resources; withdraw when necessary and reduce waste if there is excess (Lamberton, 2016). There has been increasing recognition that resource efficiency, energy and resource security are critical to sustain future economic competitiveness of countries and businesses (Preston, 2012). One particular area which has gained recent attention is the notion of the sharing economy which emphasises alternative ways to consumption over buying new goods (Benoit et al. 2017). It is one of the alternative forms of exchange and marketplace to the traditional ownership of goods that recently gained increasing interest in the field of macromarketing (Campana, Chatzidakis and Laamanen, 2017). The sharing economy also known as collaborative economy, access-based economy peer or gig economy is a growing phenomenon, which entails that a platform provider (e.g. Airbnb company) matches a customer with a peer service provider (e.g. the Airbnb host) that gives access to their unused assets (e.g. the flat) (Benoit et al. 2017). This mode of consumption can have a positive impact on the individual, the environment, the economy and the society as well as the potential to change our lifestyles and traditional business models.
Meanwhile various discourses on the sharing economy have emerged. However, these discourses are framed in contrasting ways. Some view it as an economic opportunity, that allows for more sustainable, while others fear that the sharing economy creates unregulated marketplaces, reinforces the neoliberal paradigm and an leads to an incoherent field of innovation (Martin, 2016).
In this track, participants will present findings and debate latest thinking about the sharing economy and its implications for consumers, businesses, providers, institutions, our ecosystems and society. It aims to explore the impact of the sharing economy as an alternative economy that responds to shifts in ownership and access-based consumption. We will discuss topics around the issues and the potential of the sharing economy and how it can transform ecosystems. We welcome innovative and thought-provoking submissions. Indicative suggested topics, among others, include:
The impact of access-based consumption on ecosystems
New business models in the sharing economy
Future of the sharing economy
Sustainability and access-based consumption/economy
Prosumption and value creation in the sharing economy
Economic, environmental and social impacts of sharing economy
Ethics in the sharing economy
Challenges companies in the sharing economy face in emerging countries
The dark side of the sharing economy
Laws and regulations in the sharing economy
Trust and reputation within the access-based economy
Consumer motivations and attitudes towards access-based consumption
References:
Benoit, S., Baker, T., Bolton, R., Gruber, T., Kandampully, J. (2017). A Triadic Framework for Collaborative Consumption: Motives, roles and resources, Journal of Business Research 79, 219-227.
Campana, M., Chatzidakis, A. and Laamanen, M. (2017). Introduction to the Special Issue: A Macromarketing Perspective on Alternative Economies. Journal of Macromarketing, 37(2), 125-130.
Cheshire, L., Walters, P., & Rosenblatt, T. (2010). The politics of housing consumption: Renters as flawed consumers on a mas- ter planned estate. Urban Studies, 47(12), 2597—2614.
Ellen Macarthur Foundation. (2015). Towards a circular economy: Business rationale for an accelerated transition. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications/towards-a-circular-economy-business-rationale-for-an-accelerated-transition
Kathan, W., Matzler, K. and Veider, V. (2016). The sharing economy: Your business model’s riend or foe? Business Horizons, 59, 663-672
Lamberton, C. P., & Rose, R. L. (2012). When Is Ours Better Than Mine? A Framework for Understanding and Altering Participation in Commercial Sharing Systems. Journal of Marketing, 76(4), 109-125.
Martin C.J., The sharing economy: A pathway to sustainability or a nightmarish form of neoliberal capitalism?, Ecological Economics 121, 2016, 149–159.
Mont, O., & Heiskanen, E. C., 33-48. (2015). Breaking the stalemate of sustainable consumption with industrial ecology and a circular economy. In L. Reisch & J. Thogersen (Eds.), Handbook of Research in Sustainable Consumption (pp. 33-47): Edward Elgar Publishing.
Preston, F. (2012). A Global Redesign? Shaping the Circular Economy. Chatham House, Briefing Paper Retrieved fromhttps://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/files/chathamhouse/public/Research/Energy%2C%20Environment%20and%20Development/bp0312_preston.pdf
Professor Sabine Benoit
Department of Marketing and Retail Management
Surrey Business School
University of Surrey
Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK
Room 16MS03
Personal web page: www.surrey.ac.uk/sbs/people/sabine_benoit/
Email: s.benoit@surrey.ac.uk
Department website: www.surrey.ac.uk/marketing
Department Facebook page: www.facebook.com/sbsmrm
