The sharing economy

Below you can find a selection of publications that I have worked on, focussing on the sharing economy. These have been produced and published with my Toposophy associates.

You may also wish to read my Toposophy blog post: It’s time for DMOs to take the leap on the sharing economy

This report discusses the role of the sharing economy in city tourism. While it’s easy to see the sharing economy as a cluster of challenges, in reality it can be a useful tool for city authorities to manage destinations effectively, connect visitors with local experiences and bring economic benefits to local people. However it also has to be regulated in a way that is fair to all stakeholders.

The more the different segments of the tourism sector realize the dynamics of the sharing economy the more we expand the scope of our work on practical aspects and implications. TOPOSOPHY has produced this free discussion paper for DMOs to help understand their role, and plan the way ahead. The paper includes:

Analysis of recent trends in the sharing economy, and consumer motivations for using sharing economy services
Discussion of how DMOs can update their regulations on sharing economy activities
Practical tips on building a sharing economy impact assessment, and monitoring systems
Step-by-step guide to making the sharing economy work in favour of the destination and local residentsDownload: ECM_TakingTheLeapOnTheSharingEconomy_June2016

HOTREC Policy Report: Levelling the Playing Field

As the voice of hotels, restaurants, cafés and similar establishments in Europe, HOTREC is keen to ensure that they may compete on a fair basis with all types of tourist services, as well as helping its members adapt to modern consumer trends. With this in mind, the policy paper prepared for HOTREC serves the following objectives:

– Provide a concise overview of the emergence and expansion of the private accommodation sector as facilitated by the sharing economy with a focus on key drivers and concerns.

– Highlight the cases which immediately require institutional changes from the national to the regional and local level to level the playing field.

– Put forward practical policy recommendations with regard to HOTREC’s position on the ongoing debate among tourism stakeholders, public authorities, P2P platforms and service providers.

Download the: Toposophy-HOTREC Policy Paper on the Sharing Economy – final