By Lisa A. Rice

“Almost fifty percent of my paycheck goes to medical and dental categories!” wailed Suwanee resident Linda to her friend Ashley. “I just can’t stay above water with this mess… We’re at that age where we need routine tests like colonoscopies, mammograms, braces for our boy, and dental work for my aging mom. We’re sinking!”

“Oh, have I got a solution for you,” said Ashley, excitedly. “Ever heard of bartering?”
For the next hour, Linda sat over Ashley’s shoulder and viewed the Southern Barter Club’s website, her mind whirling as she took in the possibilities before her. Continue reading →

Atlanta-based Gayle Bu has discovered a great way to pay for everything from hair cuts to kids’ tuitions, and it all comes down to bartering. “I use barter every month,” says Gayle, “trading in various amounts depending on the need.” Gayle and her husband get all their landscaping done on barter… They get haircuts, carpet cleaning, gutter cleaning, auto repairs, roofing and more – all done on 100% barter. Continue reading →

It seems that every week we run across old friends and business associates who have heard about our lives filled with barter.  They see us eating at barter restaurants, hiring barter plumbers, and going to a dentist in the barter club.  The biggest question we get is, “How does it work?  Does it involve… you know… money?”  Here’s what we tell them… Continue reading →

News media increasingly highlights witty entrepreneurs who have discovered creative ways to “skin a cat” in business. Despite an uncertain economy, millions have found a unique way to keep their small businesses in the black.  And amazingly, it’s all about the new, old-fashioned practice of bartering. Continue reading →

In recent years Atlanta-based videographer Eric Rice began looking for ways to expand his production company, despite the economic downturn. Fortunately, right around that time his pest control service provider, told him about the fascinating concept of barter. “You do a job. You just provide your product or service, and you receive ‘trade dollars’ that go into a sort of virtual bank account.  Continue reading →

Last year some members of the media ran a story on Southern Barter Company, and they followed an Atlanta couple as they demonstrated how people could spend an entire day using only barter. The couple went shopping at a Buford-based gift shop, visited a Suwanee-based dentist, ate dinner at a Dacula restaurant, picked up their children from a Montessori school in Grayson, and traveled in a limousine from place to place. Continue reading →

Getting sick is expensive and not everyone has the best health insurance, or even any insurance at all. There are a lot of parties who want to see that those bills get paid: the patient—unpaid bills equals added stress; the hospital or doctor—they need to receive payment for the care they give; the rest of us—unpaid bills often results in more expensive insurance policies.