Read the full article at News12.com
Hey Jersey bargain hunters,
There’s a new trend in consuming - where you can get all the thrill without the bill.
Folks have stopped shopping and started renting! They’re called “transumers.” The term was coined in the Netherlands and it’s all about the pleasure without the treasure - AND without the tab.
If you still want the lifestyle and the luxury you are used to, but you don’t have that expendable income at reach – start transuming!
Think less cash, less commitment and less clutter. Kind of like retail recycling!
BOOKS
Newark-based Bookswim.com is like Netflix (the online movie rental company) for readers.
You sign up online, you get charged a monthly fee (right now there is a $9.95 special rate for the introductory plan – it goes up from there depending on how much you read), you add all the books you want to read to your rental pool and they arrive in your mailbox.
There’s free shipping, free returns, no late fees, no due dates, and they guarantee new releases in stock.
“People are looking to live on a budget and not give up their lifestyle,” explains Eric Ginsberg, Vice President of Marketing for Bookswim.com. “They want the good feeling of the impulse buy, without that bad feeling of looking at the receipt and saying, ‘I shouldn’t have spent that money right now.’”
The company started up two years ago because the owner loved to read but couldn’t afford the high cost of new books. He decided to start up a sort of Netflix.com for readers. He also realized that once people read a book it just sits on a shelf collecting dust, adding to your clutter. As soon as your done with your books, you send a few back and you get a new batch.
I asked how this is a better choice than libraries - which are FREE!
Ginsberg says they feel libraries are terrific and hopes people will support them. But the bottom line is that they are usually only open until about 6 pm and that is not convenient for working New Jerseyans. Bookswim.com is a mail service and the return postage is pre-paid, so you leave the sack for your mailman. He also says libraries don’t always have more than a few copies of new releases and you end up on a waiting list. Bookswim guarantees new releases in stock at all times……..
