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This episode of Old Fox Young Fox looks at the subscription economy. Joined by Toby Beresford of Veneficus, we explore how a move from owning to renting is transforming the landscape for both consumers and suppliers globally.

Netflix, Spotify, Apple iCloud, Office 365 and Amazon Web Services are all examples of subscriptions and whether we realise it or not, we are consuming more products and services via subscription every day. In fact, 2020 saw huge growth in subscription services globally due in part to Covid-19 and our insatiable desire to try before we buy, get it now and always have the latest and greatest.

What is surprising is how far the subscription model of pay as you go has reached with school uniforms, and even jet engines moving to this model.

But how do subscriptions actually work? What are the benefits to businesses to moving to a subscription-based model and are they better or worse for us the consumer?

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About the show:

Old Fox Young Fox is an intergenerational conversation between Jeremy Woolwich and Oliver Happy, one that explores the impacts of a rapidly changing world.

• Check out Ollie's new show: Problem Busters

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Show mentions:

• Veneficus - https://www.veneficus.co.uk/
• https://Rise.global - digital scorecards
• Book - Infinite gamification by Toby Beresford
• Netflix
• Spotify
• BarclayCard data shows we have become a subscription society
• Freddy's flowers
• Nakedwines.com - the wine club
• Relationship commerce
• Microsoft Office365
• SaaS: Software as a Service
• Free trial versus Freemium
• Apple iCloud
• Music - Jeremy Woolwich piano music
• Renting property as a form of subscription
• The role of rentals in sustaining instant gratification
• The lifetime value of a customer
• Personalisation as a method of making customers sticky
• Technology as driver of subscriptions
• Google Cloud
• Laundry tablet delivery services
• Affiliate networks
• How successful subscription businesses are buying customers
• Affiliate marketing
• Influencers in social media
• Rolls Royce and General Electric renting jet engines: Power by the hour
• The circular economy and subscriptions driving sustainable behaviour
• Power by the hour spreading the risk and a win-win
• Customer success metrics
• Boeing airlines
• Sharing metrics with suppliers
• IoT The Internet of Things
• Intelligent fridges and reordering
• Amazon subscriptions in Amazon Pantry
• People buy for different reasons, integration needed to drive volume
• Subscriptions sliced off as fridges get screens and sensors
• Fragmentation of the basket of shop and where we get them from
• Yankee candles
• Meat delivery services at a lower price than supermarkets
• Subscription economy as a way for new entrants to disrupt the market
• Setting up a deeper relationship with your customers
• An investment mindset - under investment of big players leading to new entrants in the technology space
• Facebook leading the charge on technology investment
• The climate emergency and our attitudes to consumption
• The planet friendly diet
• Artificial meat now on sale in Tesco
• Beyond meat
• Author Jonathon Porritt
• School uniforms as a subscription
• Sharing economies
• Car share clubs
• How travel is changing (the grand tour)
• Taxi sharing in Holland
• Tuk tuk sharing in Thailand
• Collectivos and shared mini-bus travel

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About our guest:

Toby Beresford is an entrepreneur, author and is Head of client engagement at Veneficus, with Rise.global as "a side hustle project". Toby lives with his family in the South of England and is actively engaged in the rise of social media, the subscription economy and what it all means.

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tobyberesford/

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Related episodes:

• Ethical design with Cennyd Bowles
• Gamification who is keeping score with Toby Beresford
• Connecting the dots on the circular economy with Peter Desmond

Social promo photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash