Bondsy Stories

[bondsystories]

Ironing Board for Wine

Diana began using Bondsy to trade things left from her previous marriage. One such artifact, her ex-husband’s ironing board, didn’t fit in her new place.

Meanwhile Ricardo, a friend of a friend, had recently broken up with his girlfriend. What item did his girlfriend take when she left? Her ironing board. Nailed it.

Ricardo offered Diana a bottle of green wine from Portugal that she loves, sealing the deal.

Ricardo was especially eager to pick up the ironing board. Diana, as it turns out, lives in Ricardo’s childhood neighborhood; he hadn’t been back in a while.

He cruised the area on his skateboard, even stopping to eat at his favorite childhood Middle Eastern restaurant. “It was magical,” he said.

After making the trade, Ricardo sent Diana a photo message that made her chuckle. The picture captured Ricardo rolling the ironing board, which has an owl print, on his skateboard through one of the biggest avenues in the city. Ricardo says he received a lot of smiles and some weird looks as he moved the bulky board on his plastic skateboard through the streets.

Later that night, Diana polished off the bottle of wine with a friend and sent a thank you note to Ricardo on Instagram. A happy ending for both parties. Cheers!

[bondsystories]

Nintendo Wii for Potted Plant

This is a story we’ve heard before.

Despite his best efforts, Jonathan couldn’t find a taker for his Nintendo Wii and games. “Too valuable to throw out,” the console and games sat on the shelf.

By the time Jonathan posted them to Bondsy, he was essentially giving them away. His pricetags: “one hug or high five. (also looking for a table and some plants).”

Two days later, Rafael, Jonathan’s friend of a friend, grabbed the Wii. “My Wii broke a few months ago. My wife loves to play Mario. She used to play when she was a kid with her sister.” Nostalgia, meet Bondsy. Bondsy, Nostalgia.

Rafael could offer something more valuable than a high five. With a rooftop of plants, Rafael was happy to trade one for something that would bring joy to his wife.

“A house plant isn’t normally that valuable of a thing but for me it was exactly what I needed at the moment. It was a perfect trade!” said Jonathan.

Jonathan admitted he lacks a ‘green thumb.’ Still, we’re happy to report that the plant is alive and well, while Rafael’s wife plays the Wii often.

The story gets better. Jonathan generously and unexpectedly included a Guitar Hero in the trade. Rafael packaged the extra gift, along with some of the games, and shipped them back to his family. His nephew had a great birthday present, thanks in large part to Jonathan.

[bondsystories]

Photography Lab Equipment for Film Development

Vecks liked the idea of developing his photography film more than he actually liked developing the film. He had all the necessary equipment; he even developed some of it for 2 years. But, Vecks is lazy and a poor photographer (his words, not ours. :p), so many rolls of undeveloped film sat idle in cans throughout his room.

After downloading Bondsy, Vecks had an idea. Looking around his room, he decided to part with his lab equipment, no longer of any use to him. His pricetags: money, bicycle parts and/or development of his film.

A friend of a friend named Yan grabbed all the equipment and offered to develop the film. Vecks hired a bike messenger to deliver the lab equipment and 13 rolls of film.

“A few days later I saw a facebook post of a photo and text about the street clashes in São Paulo...and recognized his name. I realized he was a great street photographer and also a journalist....That was pretty cool.“

Vecks asked Yan if he could pay him to print contact sheets of the film. Yan told him that he’d scan them. Vecks declined, as scanning would take too much time and effort. But Yan persisted. The trade had been a great deal for Yan and he’d be happy to scan them.

Yan sent Vecks a link to the photos (here’s a sampling) and soon, they will meet for a beer so that they can exchange the negatives. Cheers fellas or Saúde (for our Brazilian friends)!

[bondsystories]

Nest Thermostats for Money

Grant always wanted a Nest thermostat, both for himself and also for his parents. The problem was cost. At $250 a piece, he couldn’t justify the purchase.

Gabriel recently moved from San Francisco to Mountain View. His transition made the two Nests he owned obsolete - his new home was incompatible with the technology. Enter Bondsy.

“I added them to Bondsy...24-48 hours later [a friend of a friend] from Texas grabbed it. I gave him a discount and he paid for shipping and I shipped it,” Gabriel said.

“I felt like it was my lucky day when I saw Gabriel’s listing on Bondsy, so we got to talking about it.”

Transacting through Bondsy set Grant’s mind at ease. “Normally I’m hesitant to send money online, but something about Bondsy made the whole experience very comfortable. I was talking with Gabriel throughout and just by him being on Bondsy I knew he was likely trustworthy, because I think Bondsy is set up in a way that deters scammers.”

“Anyways, about a week after sending him 200 dollars over Paypal I received my package in the mail containing two Nests in pristine condition.”

Grant plans to give his parents one of the Nests for Christmas. “I cannot wait to see my parents’ faces when they open this awesome gift for Christmas, and I know they'll be happy to hear I didn’t have to break bank to do it.” Not only was Gabriel happy to sell his Nests, he was also pleased to know that they would be put to such good use.

Let’s just hope Grant’s parents don’t read Bondsy Stories. Otherwise, we ruined the surprise. ;)

[bondsystories]

Nintendo-64 for Free

For almost 15 years, Aaron lugged around his Nintendo-64 console. He was reluctant to give it away, but without time to play, the console lay dormant in it's box.

A recent move to New York City called for “some hard decisions,” as Aaron put it. “I was going to try and sell it, but in the end just wanted to see it go to someone who would actually use and enjoy it. :)”

Meanwhile, James, Aaron’s good friend, had taken his own N-64 out of storage recently, only to find that his console was no longer working and that it was missing a controller. James was bummed.

Serendipity can be a funny thing, especially on Bondsy. Aaron tweeted his Bondsy post and within seconds, James grabbed the console and 4 games, including GoldenEye, for free. It was a mere one day from James’ disappointing discovery of his own malfunctioning N-64.

Now James can channel his inner Bondsy as James Bond in GoldenEye. #slappersonly!

[bondsystories]

Apartment Rental for Sunglasses & Money

Katrina had been looking for a place to offer her apartment to friends when she goes out of town. She tried other social networks, but found no takers. With Bondsy, she found a platform focused on friendly transactions.

Almost immediately after posting, Rodrigo, a friend of a friend, messaged Katrina. Rodrigo told us, “I had already booked a hotel room for my family’s summer stay in NYC. But it was nowhere near what I would get from Katrina both in terms of space and price. I have had some less-than-stellar experiences renting through other social platforms that made me a bit wary. But after getting references through a common friend, I contacted her through Bondsy.”

Katrina spoke to the same friend who was connected to Rodrigo; once he told her that Rodrigo was a great guy, she felt comfortable. “This instantly gave me the social proof that I was looking for and took away my paranoia about renting the place to a stranger.”

“It was extremely simple to logistically plan how to rent the place. Through the Bondsy app we agreed on the dates, a budget and planned to have a friend at the apartment to let him in and show him around,” she said.

After a little back and forth, Katrina dropped the price of the listing by a small amount. Rodrigo, in turn, agreed to include a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses that he had listed on Bondsy and that her husband had wanted. Rodrigo paid the rest using Venmo.

“When we got home our place was in great shape, there were a new pair of sunglasses, and I think that Rodrigo and his family enjoyed themselves. Overall, it was a great experience that I would definitely do again.”

Rodrigo added, “Up to that point, I had used Bondsy several times for small transactions. But, I now realize it can be much more. Can’t wait to find out what’s up next.”

[bondsystories]

Apple for Apple

Will found his iPod Touch while cleaning out his office. Dusting it off, he realized it had been almost two years since he'd even turned it on. In his words, it was the "perfect candidate to feature on my Bondsy page!"

When posting, Will settled on a number of different pricetags, including both an Apple TV and an Apple Magic Trackpad.

Within hours of the post, a friend of a friend, Alan, grabbed the iTouch and offered the Trackpad Will had been seeking.

"We traded more pictures on the private chat, and done!"

On the day of the exchange, Will couldn't be at his apartment. So, he left the iTouch with his doorman and when he returned, his new Trackpad was waiting for him.

"I have traded 2 or 3 times after that and had only smooth experiences! Trading with friends, and friends of friends also gives this feeling that makes the offerings more reliable!"

We couldn't have said it better ourselves!

[bondsystories]

Handwritten letter for handwritten letter

Viviane has always loved handwritten letters. As a teen, she exchanged letters with friends from all over the world. Even now, as an adult, she loves the idea of giving and receiving a letter.

So, when she began using Bondsy, she had a novel idea - offer to write a letter if someone wrote her back.  "I saw that some people offer a lunch, a coffee, a drink... why not words?"

She's been extremely successful, having exchanged messages with four people. She's met a drummer, a writer, and even a pastry chef, always sending them letters in her own "orange Bondsy" envelopes.

She continues to go back and forth with one of them to this day. "I'm still exchanging letters [with people from Bondsy]..." she says, "And I intend to continue!"

[bondsystories]

Early access to startup for free

Luke, co-founder of Marquee, a NYC startup, offered free early access to his awesome new product. He got over 20 grabs!

If you’re not friends with him on Bondsy, you can always request early access at marquee.by.

[bondsystories]

Playdate with pup for food

First Roxana offered a playdate with her dog in exchange for ice cream. Diego was inspired and posted the same thing. Anne offered him a package of sausage, and they met in person for the first time to do the trade. It was a fun walk in the Brooklyn Bridge Park. The sausage was from clawhammerfarm.com.

[bondsystories]

Wardrobe for bottle of Bulleit Bourbon

Aaron posted a beautiful wardrobe, made obsolete by a move to a bigger apartment with closet space. Eli grabbed it for a bottle of Bulleit Bourbon Whiskey. The Bourbon drinker’s other pricetags? A cool plant, ​organic meat of any kind, ​a good book, ​art.

[bondsystories]

7lb of Bacon for 15lb of Coffee

Cody, who has a small farm in Washington, posted bacon from a pig that his girlfriend, a butcher, had recently slaughtered. His friend Justin, a coffee-shop owner, grabbed the bacon for some coffee. The farmer drove 90m to make the trade and see his friend. Delicious!