The art of Bartering has been around since time immemorial
and it has been proven to be an acceptable and enjoyable way of doing business
with other like-minded people. Bartering can also be a satisfying and
advantageous way of obtaining essential goods and services especially when
money is tight. Yet, while doing trade by barter has been common practice that
is acceptable across much of the world, and frequently used by governments to
trade commodities such as oil, in Britain there has been certain scepticism
surrounding it despite the advantages it can bring.
As any small business knows, a lack of cash flowing in can often
be a burden especially during these hard pressed times while the banks are
refusing to extend lending and overdraft facilities to viable enterprises. During
periods when cash sales are scarce, you still need to obtain essential raw
materials or services from your suppliers in order for your business to
survive. You might also be sitting on excess stock that is taking up valuable
storage space and costing you money that you want to shift. Those in a service
industry are also likely to have excess capacity that they need to fill to keep
the business ticking over. This might include an hotel with empty rooms that
need occupying, a graphic designer that has time on their hands or a
publication with spare advertising space going begging. Restaurateurs will know
that it creates a bad impression when a few paying customer are surrounded by an otherwise empty dining
room. Customers prefer eating in vibrant establishments; empty
premises create a bad ambience and can damage a reputation by suggesting the
food is not good. It makes good sense to fill empty tables with diners even if
these customers cannot currently afford to pay in cash but are willing to exchange
something else your business may need?
