Life For Rent: My Week Living On Subscriptions

Excerpts from an article by Dion McKenzie in HuffPost Lifestyle

To some, it may seem that the subscription economy is a recent phenomenon that has changed the way that businesses provide services and how consumers consume. However, subscription actually predates modern day technology. In fact, according to archives, the first use of publishing subscription was for a rare book collection by John Brown in 1617 .

Since 2010, there has been a huge growth in the subscription market, and now you can get just about anything through subscription. Thanks to this growth in popularity, 80 per cent of people now have at least one subscription service, with companies like Netflix, which was actually founded in 1997, and Spotify, being some of the more popular subscription-based businesses.

I challenged myself to live for a week on subscriptions, and here’s what happened…

Getting ready for work
Waking up at 5.30am, I go for a run, shower, shave, eat my breakfast, brush my teeth and then I’m out the door. A fairly normal routine.

Except for each stage of my ‘getting ready’ process I use products that I have subscribed to for the week; everything down to the toothpaste that I brush my teeth with.

What’s it really like?
Living life on subscription is incredibly convenient. You can effectively plan an entire week of your life “necessities” without having to really lift a finger. You can do just about anything through subscription services.

Subscription-based living offers variety to a daily regime. It allows people to try different foods, grooming products, films and even cars that they otherwise wouldn’t have access to. Subscription isn’t just about an on-demand lifestyle; it’s a lifestyle of much more extensive access.

Read about Dion’s entire day on HuffPost

And download Zuora’s 9 Keys to Building a Successful Subscription Business

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