After months of hearing about it through the grapevine, I finally managed to join Bunz. If you don’t know what that is, it’s a whimsical online community where people trade stuff they don’t want, for stuff they do.
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| Where the magic happens! |
Mostly, Bunz is a fun and often kooky way to declutter, and to allow otherwise idle (or about-to-be-discarded) goods to find new utility and owners.
Originally a ‘secret’ Facebook group based in Toronto that has since expanded to other cities and to an online app, Bunz is a warm, friendly, and generous collective; although with tens of thousands of members, a few negative outliers are inevitable.
A key aspect of Bunz is the entertainment value. It’s fascinating to see what other people swap and talk about—at the cost of overrunning my Facebook feed and notifications. It’s like a never-ending Value Village mashed up with Craigslist, with a significant dollop of Facebook commentary thrown in for good measure. It’s an instant contradiction, both hazily anti-capitalist in spirit, yet fiercely mercantile in practice.
The Main Rule
“No money allowed in this zone.”That’s it. This simple rule animates the Zone’s ethos by framing each trade as a neighbourly exchange of goods and services, rather than a cold monetary transaction.
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| Bunz has one rule |
Notionally a barter economy, the Zone has nevertheless witnessed the emergence of substitute currencies in the form of TTC tokens and booze. We’ll explore that dynamic further, in the course of this chronicle.
My Goals
I’m not seeking to ‘win’ all my trades; some will be up, others down. The base assumption is that I’m trying to get rid of anything I’m trading away, so no matter what happens, I’m net positive on every trade. My aims on Bunz are simple:- clear out a whole bunch of random junk I’ve accumulated (primarily books), and
- wind up with useful or amusing things
- have fun.
Even (and in fact especially) when you don’t maximize the value of what you receive, the differential can be considered as a personal contribution to the happiness of the Bunz on the other side of the trade. Which is to say, yes, it’s about trading, but it’s also about increasing the general level of delight in the system.
BUNZ AD from Emily Bitze on Vimeo.
I’m also pretty shy socially, so this is a low-key way to meet people, however ephemerally.
You can read more about Bunz:
- Globe and Mail
- National Post
- Vice
- Who Is Emily Frances? Meet the founder of Bunz (SheDoestheCity.com)
- Toronto Star; a 2nd follow-up piece
- or watch this video: Global TV.
Terminology
- ISO = “In search of”
- Bunz = a member of the Zone (singular: Bun). It can also be used as a verb. Sort of like Smurf.
- Tallcan = a (large) can of beer (alt.: a ‘tallboy’)
- Token = TTC token for the Toronto transit system
- Flake = Bun who expresses interest, but then doesn’t show for a trade
- Bump = ‘Bring up my post’. Activity makes a post go to the top of the feed for the (facebook) group, so sometimes people bump their posts after awhile if they haven’t gotten much response.
- PM = private message. When you directly contact a Bun to negotiate and arrange the details of a trade. Check your Message Requests, folks!!
Let’s begin!
Trade 1: Modelling for a free haircut
See Also
Gallery of TradesISO & Available Stuff
Bunz Cats
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