Agro Perspectiva

Time, food, money

16.05.2012 09:13 "Agro Perspectiva" (Kyiv) — Paying your bills with your skills and knowledge is now possible in the new format of cafe called Time/Food that opened in Moscow on May 15. By offering people one’s valuable skills and knowledge, a person can earn points that can be used for paying for meals at the Time/Food restaurant, making purchases at the Time/Store as well as buying tickets to a number of museums. This «alternative economics» scheme was conceived and implemented in New York last year. Now about 3000 people all over the world take part in the project. But being cautious of the negative consequences of such a coup d’état, the promoters of the project do not intend to replace the existing economy with their own. It is becoming clear that the old economic model is outdated and requires new ideas. In some cafes customers are offered to wash the dishes or cook something with their own hands in payment for their meal. Some creative restaurateurs might ask to apply a temporary tattoo with their logo on you in compensation for free drinks. Others prefer to charge for the time. This is the business model of the Moscow based anti-cafe «Babochki» (Butterflies). A minute spent inside costs 2 rubles. Inside the cafe one can have a tasty meal, but also read a book from the local library, drink some coffee or give a master-class to other customers. The main thing is to remember that time is money, said the director for business development of the anti-cafe Pavel Melnikov to the Voice of Russia: «The place does not insist on any format, does not force anybody to do what the rules dictate. You can read, study, work. Some tutors give their lessons here. The place is of a new format, where people can do what they want». Especially interesting is the «Pay what you want» scheme. The basis of that scheme is post factum payment: first you evaluate the goods or services, and then you name the price. In 2007 the popular British group Radiohead made a huge impact with a similar venture. Being tired of the fact that their music was constantly being pirated, the musicians uploaded their new album for downloading for any payment the fans considered appropriate. Alexander Legchakov with a PhD in economics highly appreciates such a progressive approach: «In that respect the system is ideal. It gives a method of evaluating the product, its analysis and a chance to pay for it afterwards. Psychologically, it is implied that ‘if you like it, you pay for it.’ That arrangement should be made clear from a school age.» But is everybody ready to take on such responsibility? In Europe one prefers to pay more rather than undervalue the quality of a service. Michael Hildebrand, the owner of the Liebling café in Munich that has been employing this scheme for four years, remarks on the specific features of the German mentality: «Some people are not used to making such a responsible move themselves by setting the price on their own. If you bring the bill for a cup of coffee for 5 euro, somebody will think: ‘It seems very expensive, but if I have got to pay, I will do it.’ And if you overpay at our place, you can only blame yourself. People prefer to be fooled by somebody else, not fool themselves.» A young woman called Svetlana, who has a mobile cafe in Moscow, cooks for people for donations because she loves to cook and loves people. «Gauri» café functions well at city street markets and festivals, and revenue is often three times the expenses. Svetlana’s formula for success is based on the exclusion of two main factors: the steep price of rental space and high expectations of profitability. This is a hobby that one should do with love. «In human relationships there are no equivalents, no commercial relations. We live not in an economy, but in a society. Such non-standard schemes, and there are many of them, force us to return to human relations». Similar one-time events are also taking place in hotels, in particular in the resorts of Austria, Switzerland and Singapore. Alexey Saveliev, the head of hospitality services of the «Ibis» hotel, is skeptical about such initiatives taking root in Russia. «Hospitality business is a business that requires good forecasting. And if such a system were introduced, it would make forecasting totally impossible. That is why, in my opinion, it is very inefficient». The main ingredient of the «alternative economy» is trust. It is no surprise that Russian businessmen view the new trends with caution. However, the modest experience of the brave risk-takers to date has yielded positive results — if not financial, then definitely emotional.