A data point that’s lingering: adoption of Hardware as a Service

So, this is a data point I can’t get out of my head.

IT Web, based in South Africa, published a profile on Rentoza, an on-demand subscription-based online platform for electronics and appliances.  Here’s the quote from the CMO and co-founder:

We’ve been growing by around 35% month-on-month for the last 20 months, and annually we grew about 400% year-on-year in terms of total revenue from subscriptions.  People gravitate towards this model because it’s really a new access model for all the essential items they require. People are now seeing they can manage their products and lifestyle very differently, with a model such as ours which allows them flexibility,”

I like data from different markets to consider, and the growth of a subscription hardware offering in South Africa leaves me pondering the implications.  Frankly, I don’t know why this intrigues me… and yet it’s lingered since I read it.     Not having all the answers is ok – and I hope this data point stimulates someone else’s great idea.