What happens when you get some of the most passionate people about co-spaces in the same room? Magic.

Last month, Near Me sponsored an event at NextSpace Union Square on “Activating Co-Spaces” with some of the most influential people on the topic including Tristan Pollock of Storefront, Jeremiah Owyang of Crowd Companies, Michelle Regner of Near Me, Jeremy Neuner of NextSpace, Ben Provan of Open Door, and Morgan Fitzgibbons of Freespace. The event was moderated by Chelsea Rustrum, author of It’s a Shareable Life. The conversation touched on various space related topics but also sharing as a whole--such as the concept of our culture moving from the industrial revolution into a village state and that sharing does exist beyond the San Francisco “bubble”.

The conversation eventually led to asking how do we keep the soul in the sharing economy as brands start to join in whether it's space, transportation, food and other verticals? This question is valuable in many ways because it is a concern for many of the sharing economy startups, enthusiasts and committed believers of the movement.

So, how do we keep the soul of the sharing economy when big brands join us?

Some of the answers that we heard addressed the partnership that needs to exist between big brands and the development and journey into this space. There needs to be education and a partnership. We see this being done with Jeremiah Owyang’s Crowd Companies Brand Council and their Innovation Network that includes various sharing economy startups.

Second, the CEO of Near Me touched on that brands see that the sharing economy is built on community and empowering peers trusting their peers. Brands can’t enter this space and expect to remove that element from it or else it no longer is the sharing economy. The community is what makes it work.

Here are some key points on this topic to keep in mind:

Community is essential to the success of a marketplace. The same way social media helped brands listen to their customers, the sharing economy will empower those customers to have a community of likeminded individuals.

There will be some brands looking only to make a profit--and don’t care as deep, if at all, about sharing. Jeremiah’s report mentioned people like to share because of convenience and price instead of other reasons some might hope for. The sustainability factor and philosophy behind the movement may motivate enthusiasts, but some brands are different. But, if it benefits the greater good, should we fight against their reason behind getting involved or embrace the fact that less product is being made, quality over quantity is the new approach and we’re changing the way digital commerce works?

It is bound to happen. For the sharing economy to move past being a “trend” large brands need to adopt, accept and move it mainstream. True believers of the sharing economy movement should welcome this as it means our culture has finally shifted and it’s no longer a movement but a way of life. Isn’t that what we want?

What are some other ways that brands can keep the soul in the sharing economy?

A special thank you to our moderator Chelsea Rustrum, Nextspace for providing an event location and Near Me for sponsoring the event. You can see what else was said by checking out #SharersTalks on Twitter.