“We are passionate about discovering the abundance we have through sharing; about shifting our culture away from consumerism and towards environmental stewardship, community cultivation, and financial empowerment.”- Alexander Pezzutto, Co-founder of Rentbridge
Ever started a project or tried to start a project and realized you didn’t have the correct tools? Have you ever wanted to try out kayaking but didn’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on one in case you melted in the water? Renbridge is just the answer you have been looking for.
The idea for Rentbridge started in 2017 after co-founder Alex Pezutto bought his first house during the summer. Not having a lawnmower himself and not wanting to spend the money on something he would only use a few times a year, he started asking around to see if others had had similar experiences. Alex found that almost 100% of people he talked to had one of those moments where they didn’t have what they needed and didn’t want to go out and purchase a new version. Rentbridge was created out of real-life situations and a real-life need for product sharing within our communities.
Rentbridge is a new and exciting company that is shifting away from consumerism and more towards doing the things we love, sustainably. It’s a place to lend and rent everyday items like kayaks, projectors, drills, chocolate fountains...almost anything! Sure there are Facebook groups and other neighbours you could borrow from, but have you ever had that fear of what happens if I break it and then I have to buy a brand new one. Rentbridge eases that worry for you by providing safe and easy access to nearly anything right from your phone, with $100,000 insurance for both borrowers and lenders. This protects you when you borrow or lend anything with Rentbridge.
Who wouldn’t want to save a little money on those DIY projects or make a little money from that kayak collecting dust in the garage? With an easy to use website and a new app for both IOS and Android, sharing and borrowing what you need couldn’t be easier.
The catalogue of items on Rentbridge is already at 500 with new items being added regularly and hundreds of users that are also growing daily. Sharing locally is really a community effort and combined with trying to be financially responsible, things can get a little complicated. Saving money and protecting the environment doesn’t mean you have to completely overhaul your life, using a simple but effective service like Rentbridge is a great way to start. Their little solution to our consumer waste problem, will provide a big impact in the long term by helping us move away from the “I need that” mentality.
Rentbridge is a great step towards living in a more circular economy. Consumerism is what drives our linear economy, with everyone purchasing products to be used only a few times. But by using a company like Renbridge to share what we have, we can cut back on the need to own everything and start sharing. It helps borrowers save money and reduce waste with two of the most effective 3R’s- REDUCE and REUSE. This is a much more sustainable way of growing our economy and gives you a chance to connect with your local community! Happy renting!
Editor's note: Unfortunately Rentbridge is no longer operating.
Written by Erin Hanrahan.
The catalogue has a wide ranging set of products.