Radical Gift Giving

I did something big yesterday, something that made me nervous but I was totally confident in my decision.

I changed all my pricing at the Farmers Market to pay-what-you-wish.

I asked permission just to make sure I wouldn't ruffle any feathers. I made new tags for all the items with zero pricing information. I removed any signage from the small items on the table. I made cue cards with details on how a pay-what-you-wish system works, including the language to use when making an offer (I find that this is the biggest barrier).

It felt so good! It felt freeing, like I was letting go of something that had been holding me back. It felt like I was finally offering the world something in line with my values.

Two pretty amazing things happened after that. First, I had a new pitch. If you've ever tabled at a market or event, you'll know that you develop a pitch to strike up conversation with passersby to avoid the awkward silence or try to engage them. Before, my pitch talked about how everything was made from recycled materials and that I tried to save things from the landfill and give them new life. The rugs are made on a floor loom and yes, they are machine washable yadda yadda yadda. It was a good pitch but fairly superficial.

Yesterday my pitch changed to “I'm trying something new so please bare with me.” It was like the moment of vulnerability was enough to draw their interest and then when I told them about the change in pricing, they would soften amd be genuinely suprised all at once. A few people were obviously put off and I was expecting that but the folks that were interested wanted to know more. They'd ask questions and share experiences. One woman admitted she'd wanted to buy a rug for weeks but couldn't afford it. She came back later with a very reasonable offer which I was so grateful to accept. Another visitor was an artist who shared their experience struggling to place a dollar value on their art. The conversations were wonderfully deep.

The second amazing thing: I doubled my sales. Not only did I sell twice as many items as I usually do, but I went home with more money than if I had sold everything at ticket price.

The gift economy is such a beautiful thing. We give when we have it in us to give and gratefully receive when others offer. There's no value. No expected barter or exchange. It's a system of sharing - of caring for each other based on the belief that we are stronger as a healthy community than in individual wealth.

Mentally and culturally, shifting away from capitalism to a gift model is incredibly challenging. It's a trust based model, and capitalism doesn't exactly breed trust. There is a deep seeded feeling that wealth needs to be hoarded to provide security in our current culture. There's a belief that those who receive from others are free loaders, unable to carry their own weight. These two values alone are enough to topple any gift based economic model, even as a complimentary system alongside capitalism.

But if we want to shift away from this broken system of capitalism, embedding complimentary systems is an important task. Barter or exchange groups, time banks, or even freecycling networks provide an easy and simple alternative for exchanging goods and services at least in part outside of capitalism.

Radical gift giving is another option for fighting back against a culture that teaches us individual wellbeing at the expense of others.

I know that pay-what-you-wish isn't quite radical gift giving, but I do feel like it's another step along the long path away from our broken economy. PWYW allows people to reciprocate based on their perceived value of an item rather than my hourly wage, which never actually works for handmade goods anyway. It takes into consideration their financial status. It opens up the possibility for more accessibility to goods and services for exchanged. It removes the arbitrary value barrier for people of lower income and actually allows people of higher income to offer more money for items they love.

I acknowledge that folks experiencing financial insecurity might not have the option to offer this type of pricing or exchange. Obviously, that's totally okay. We all live in this broken system and need to do what we can to survive. Don't take my words as a statement of superiority. I sincerely hope all of us are able to make this type of transition one day, but I recognize that day might not come soon.

But for myself, I'm excited to go back to the market next week. I'm excited to make more to share with the world. I'm so incredibly happy I finally took the plunge and made the commitment to change to align with my values. And I'm so relieved it was well received!