Sharing economy accelerator launches in Sydney

Internet Retailing

25th Oct 2016

Leaders in Australia’s sharing economy have established the country’s first sharing economy accelerator called The Sharing Hub in Sydney, which aims to foster innovation and work with policy makers to rapidly grow this emerging sector.

The Sharing Hub will give young startups access to education, mentorship and investment opportunities, provide a space for entrepreneurs to collaborate and share their advice and experiences and accelerate their development.

With the NSW Government’s recent position paper released by the Minister of Innovation and Better Regulation, Victor Dominello acknowledging the importance of the collaborative economy, the accelerator also aims to work with policy makers to share key insights about the industry which is estimated to be worth around $504M in NSW alone.

The hub will be led by some of Australia’s most influential sharing economy leaders including Steve Orenstein, the founder and CEO of on demand express courier service Zoom2u; Alexis Soulopoulos, the CEO and co-founder of Australia’s leading pet-sitting network Mad Paws; and Will Davies, the CEO of car-sharing and rental service Car Next Door.

Leading the team will be Mike Rosenbaum (pictured above), ex-Deals Direct co-founder and CEO of self-storage marketplace Spacer.com.au, who is one of Australia’s leading investors and on the board of several of Australia’s most successful peer-to-peer startups.

“With the collaborative economy being a relatively new sector in Australia, we are launching The Sharing Hub in Sydney where both young and established companies can share knowledge and experience to inspire, invest and promote the growth of this exciting emerging industry.

“We have already started hosting events to begin building the network and give new and prospective startups the opportunity to connect, meet leaders and seek advice within the industry,” said Rosenbaum, who will be leading The Sharing Hub.

The sharing economy has growing in Australia over recent years, with new technologies playing a key role in its potential for future growth. Startups are tapping into opportunities to enable both business and consumers to monetise their skills and underutilised resources.

“The sharing economy has facilitated the creation of new markets, and economic activity where some previously never existed. It’s opening up a number of interesting possibilities including on-demand access to goods and services, efficient utilisation of unused inventory of assets and increased employment including the rise of micro entrepreneurs. This sector has immense potential which is why we’re investing in growing this sector with The Sharing Economy Hub, and to show why it’s time to start caring about sharing,” Rosenbaum said.