Need Something? Don't Buy It. Borrow From a Neighbor

We might not like to admit it, but Americans live in a culture of consumer waste. We buy something, use it once and leave it sitting in the closet untouched. We fill up self-storage units with loads of our stuff and for months simply forget about it. In fact, there are 19.2 square feet of self-storage space for every American household, according to the Self Storage Association. But how can the smart consumer get more use out of the stuff they own? A relatively new NeighborGoods.net may provide an answer.

In the Metro Atlanta area, the user base is not huge yet, as Krimmel said the company is focused primarily on Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco. Regardless, South Cobb residents can now begin using the site so that they can find anything from a tent to a vacuum cleaner and, instead of buying the item, they can simply borrow it from someone else.

With the unemployment rate still lingering near 10 percent and the recovery from the flood still ongoing in South Cobb, people are cutting back on expenses. What better way to save at a time when you need to save most than by sharing with neighbors?

Neighbor Goods, a California start-up which launched nationwide last July, helps people in a community share the items they own, so they can avoid waste, save money, protect the environment and get to know their neighbors.

To use the service, users make posts on the website informing others in the community that they have an item they are willing to loan. They can choose to loan their items for free or charge a fee, and they can also find other items on-loan that they may need.

Micki Krimmel, the founder and chief executive officer of Neighbor Goods, said the idea started when she went to Thailand and tried to borrow a backpack for the trip. She called the people she knew, but was unable to find one in time, eventually spending $250 on an item she was only going to use once. She said this made her start thinking about how Americans don't get enough use out of the stuff they buy.

“I started thinking about all those wasted resources and really saw an opportunity there not only to build a business, but to help people live more sustainably and more connected to each other,” Krimmel said.

Krimmel said initially the idea was to help people save money and avoid waste, but she soon found what people enjoyed most about the service was that it allowed them to get to know their neighbors and strengthen their local communities.

“Moving forward we're really focusing on... the feeling people get from helping each other because that's what we've learned is the greatest value we provide to our users,” said Krimmel.

Will NeighborGoods.net take off in South Cobb? That depends on the residents of Austell and Mableton, but if it does, perhaps we can all save some money, help the environment and build our community. After all, what's the point of buying something that your neighbor already has in the garage?