Care Economy Business Models

The Care Economy

A care economy business serves not just profit for shareholders, but plays an active part on overall community health, treating everyone as a stakeholder. As with conventional businesses, there will be a huge range of size and sector. At the bottom end, a home baker might make cakes and sell them in the local community. At the top end, a multinational might support such businesses by assisting with admin, logistics, distribution, financial transaction processing. We see similar model today with ETSY and Amazon. One of the key developments is that AI will automate a great many of the boring and time-consuming parts of a business such as marketing, sales, distribution and taxes. That means that a lot of people who would otherwise find running a small business too daunting a task might be able to. They won’t need an MBA, or skills in marketing or sales, or legal or accountancy skills – they can all be delegated to AI. The home baker could get on with baking cakes instead of having to spend hours every day on admin. Enabling many hobbyists to become business people will help create social bonds and community cohesion.

There are many technologies that will make big contributions – social networking, AI, 3D printing, robotics, automated distribution (drones, or self-driving pods or cars).

Another area where businesses might evolve is in what I call ‘part bake’. I had the idea first while working on an event for food manufacturing. It occurred to me that people like food to be freshly cooked, and some supermarkets were selling part baked bread for exactly that purpose. I saw that the model could be extendes greatly by selling a wide range of products, not just foods, in a ‘part-baked’ state, where a local business would buy them, then personalise or adapt them to local needs. Again, it would be an excellent model for the care economy. It could be part-baked cakes, where a local cake decorator might buy several every day and then decorate them for local birthdays or celebrations. They would not need to have baking skills as well as decorating skills, and could concentrate on what they do best. Obviously, combing with the above model, a local baker could be baking the cakes, with someone a street away decorating them. A local driver might collect and deliver them, along with many other products in the area.

If we look at the bigger picture, we can see how large businesses could halp support a range of smaller ones, helping the local community enormously, but importantly, in doing so, increasing the potential markets for their own produce. Cloudy manufacturing is not charity, it makes money for all of those involved, while simulataneously helping to forge stronger relationships and bonds in the community.

Clearly, this would be a very healthy transition for business. It isn’t at all anti-capitalist, but by making companies more involved in helping other companies, the whole economy increases, making everyone better off. At the same time, very many hobbyists-become-businesspeople will gain not only ‘side-hustle’ income but more importantly, a better sense of self-actualisation, doing what they love and getting great feedback from others who enjoy their products, as well as increased social fulfilment too, from new relationships. But of course, in doing all of this, while helping social sustainability, it is also possible to improve other areas of sustainability too. Not least if that by providing many products and services from withing local communities, the environmental footprint will be far better than importing it all the way from China or Africa.

A very broad range of technologies could be linked in to this sort of enterprise expansion. Many, such as locally grown (or made) produce, smart packaging, drones and autonomous vehicles, and even AI upskilling and augmented reality support tools will be key to improving sustainability too. Everyone wins.

Guest Post: Reed and Bhs are inevitable collateral damage in today’s omni-channel sales and marketing world

Another guest post from Christopher Moseley, (details below)

Reed and Bhs are inevitable collateral damage in today’s omni-channel sales and marketing world

It’s not hard not to get a little bit nostalgic about the death throes of well-known British High Street brands. Woollies was the first big name in living memory to get killed off in the Great War of the Internet versus the High Street; Austin Reed and Bhs are the very latest casualties.

Philip Green’s soon to face a grilling from a Commons committee, and no doubt the sense of outrage and accusations of asset stripping will heighten the tensions and anger associated with job losses and the of dying British High Street brands. As to Austin Reed, it’s hard to see a well-heeled target figure stepping forward to face similar political brickbats: it just kind of, well, died away.

Asset stripping aside it’s hard to see how tired old brands like Bhs might have survived in a world where choice is a touch screen away. The venerable British High Street, and the myriad shops which struggle to stay solvent within the confines of her bricks and mortar structure, still has a white knight in the form of Mary Portas, but it’s clear that the writing is on the, er, shop window … it reads, ‘Closing Down’.

Twenty or so years ago if I had wanted to buy a set of headphones I would have strolled to my nearest retailers to make my purchase.  In the 2010s, close as I am to my local high street, I can simply go online. It’s the only viable decision – there’s simply a much bigger choice, and greater availability.

And with a smartphone in hand, or a laptop or tablet at my side, I’m able to quickly locate a wealth of information about my desired product before being given a list of potential suppliers – often ranked by reliability and item price.

Why would I ‘go’ bricks and mortar, when with a simple click my goods can be delivered to my house the very next day?

Why break into a bipedal sweat when one can surf?

Omni-channel selling provides consumers with numerous channels through which they can interact with and purchase from retail businesses. There’s all the attendant information about products, the means to interact with technical experts, and a giddy range of devices: smartphones, desktops, notebooks to browse on.

The 24-7 shopping experience

The obvious advantage of Internet shopping is that is that one can shop well after the High Street curfew of 5:30pm. We can all shop to heart’s content, on the couch, in the bath, or in a tent on Ben Nevis. Businesses that can’t cater for the around-the-clock punters face obliteration. Why walk?

The future’s bespoke, more interesting and built for humans

Around 16 years ago, when the first corrosive impact of the Internet was being felt in the High Street, I once tried to stage a media stunt. I proposed a debate between several well-known exponents of retail, pitted against some toughies (clients actually) who worked in e-commerce. If memory serves I’d wanted to co-opt a Selfridges or Harrods window to conduct the debate. It would have been fab I think.

It never happened – I guess the issue wasn’t quite sufficiently in the public eye back in ’00.

It’s a different story today. We’re right in the middle of a bloodbath and it’s hard to see a future for the great British High Street, other than, perhaps, this is an opportunity to return to something rather old-fashioned, something much more traditional.

If there is a future for the High Street, it won’t be a continuation of today’s confection of identikit chain stores, but rather much akin to the boutique butcher, baker and candlestick maker of yesteryear. Throw in some vibrant street markets, some residential housing, and one has something like the world of the Edwardian era.

So, the mantra of the High Street in the 2020s might just be, ‘Let’s party like it’s 1899 …’

Chris Moseley

Head of Public Relations, Merchant Marketing Group

Email. chris@merchantmarketinggroup.com

Tel +44 238022 5478

Phoenix-based business strategy will win in a fast-changing world

I am leaving for a conference in a few minutes, so this one will be brief. I hate working in airports and hotels.

Businesses worry how they will survive the next 5, 10, 15 years. They should perhaps stop worrying. The primary purpose of a business is to make money. So here is a better strategy than worrying and spending loads on long term planning:

Spot opportunity

Use cloud based thinking and virtuality to get business up and running explosively quickly.

Employ as few staff as possible as full employees, buy the rest in on short term consultancy contracts and freelancing. That keeps admin overheads minimal. Make them use their own kit and use cloud for IT support and provision. That makes IT staff, risks and costs minimal.

Develop quickly and make your money fast with no regard to longevity.

When competition or other market erosion forces start making an impact, cash in and close down while value is still good

Re-invest in next idea, rising like a phoenix using the cash from the last business

This approach is very light-weight. It needs far less administrative load and can be far more task focused, with higher profit margins.

Live fast, die young, resurrect.

OK, flight to catch.