bed‑stuy, brooklyn · est. 2025
Everybody has Value. Share Yours.
In Bed‑Stuy, neighbors already know how to do the things their neighbors need. Reciproc8 keeps track of who traded what, so it keeps going around. No money changes hands.
See what your block tradesWhat gets traded here Examples of the kind of thing neighbors trade. Real ones are on the Explore page.
four ways things move around here
Four ways neighbors help each other out.
Bed-Stuy is not short on skill, tools, or willingness. What has been missing is a way for them to find each other without a dollar in the middle. These are the four we built.
01 · gift economy
Given freely. Nothing owed back.
The crib your kid outgrew, the extra tomatoes, an hour of your afternoon. You post it, a neighbor claims it, and it gets written down so the block can see what it gave itself.
- Nothing is expected back, and nobody can ask you for anything
- First to claim it gets it, with someone keeping order when a lot of people want the same thing
- It gets written down, same as any other trade
Crib and changing table
Good condition, all hardware included. Pickup on Putnam Ave, any evening this week.
YOU GIVE
Guitar lessons, 4 weeks
YOU GET
Winter coat hemmed + patched
02 · direct barter
Two people agree it is fair. That settles it.
No hours, no points, no exchange rate. You each say what you are bringing, you both agree to it, and it is done when you both say it is done. What counts as fair is up to the two of you, not to us.
- We show you neighbors who need what you have, and have what you need
- You write down what you agreed to before anyone shows up
- Either of you can walk away before it is done, no hard feelings
03 · commitment pools
When a trade needs more than two people.
A pool is a group of neighbors each putting in what they can spare: an afternoon of carpentry, a working van, a room on Thursdays. You take out what somebody else put in. One person runs it, and writing everything down keeps it straight.
- You do not have to find one person who wants exactly what you have
- Somebody by name runs it, and the rules they set are posted where everyone can read them
- What you put in, you owe to the whole pool, not to any one neighbor
Halsey St Tool Pool
steward: Bailey's Cafe · 41 members
Commit something in
Restor8 mend
issued by Bailey's Cafe · expires Nov 30
Workshop seat
any listed skill share · no expiry
Tool pool day
Halsey St pool · 1 day per voucher
04 · community asset vouchers
A promise you can hold and hand to someone else.
A voucher is a neighbor's promise to do one specific thing: a mend, a seat at a workshop, a day with the tools. They promised it first, you can pass it along to someone else, and it is used up when somebody redeems it.
- Somebody has to promise the thing before a voucher for it exists, and their name is on it
- You can hand it to someone else, so it reaches whoever needs it most
- Not money: not priced in dollars, not convertible to cash
how it goes around
One promise can help four neighbors before it is used up.
What one person offers can pass through several hands before anyone uses it. That is how the good stays on the block instead of leaving the first time it changes hands.
A neighbor offers
an afternoon of mending
Pool holds it
someone sets the rules
It becomes a voucher
one mend, pass it on
It gets passed on
neighbor to neighbor
Redeemed at Restor8
a coat gets fixed
It stays on the block
it never left
- every step gets written down
- nothing is given a dollar value
- you always know whose promise it is
- whoever runs a pool answers to the neighbors in it
a flagship program
Restor8. Clothes mended, for free.
Bring the coat with the busted zipper, the jeans with the ripped knee. A local mender mends it. Collect it the following Friday. Clothes and textiles only.
- Fridays 5pm to 7pm
- Jackie Robinson Park
- No signup
No phone, or no signal? Ask a volunteer at the table to log it for you. Nothing gets lost.
Bring something Friday →Where this happens
Jackie Robinson Park · Fridays 5pm to 7pm
Repair log · R8-0447
ReadyNavy wool coat · zipper replaced
Dropped off Fri Oct 3 · mended by Denise A.
Logged at the table
Oct 3, 5:42pm
Mender assigned
Oct 4, 11:10am
Ready for collection
Fri Oct 10, from 5pm
getting in
Three steps. Forty seconds.
Tell us what you'd trade
A short conversation, not a form. What you can do, what you need, what block you are on. You do not need an account to start.
See who is near you
We show you what is already open within walking distance. If your block is quiet right now, we say so instead of showing you an empty page.
Make your first trade
Write down what you agreed to, meet up, and mark it done. It gets written down so it counts. That is the whole thing.
Takes 40 seconds. No account, no card.
straight answers
The questions we actually get asked.
If yours is not here, write to us. We answer, and if the answer is “we have not solved that yet,” we say that instead.
Ask us directly →Does this cost anything?
No fee, no subscription, no cut. No cash moves through any of this, which is the point. We are a non-profit funded by grants and donations, fiscally sponsored by Bailey’s Cafe.
Is a voucher a currency? Can I cash one out?
No. A voucher is one specific thing that one named person promised to do. It is not priced in dollars, not convertible to cash, and not an investment. You can transfer it to someone else, and it settles when it is redeemed.
How is an exchange valued if there is no rate?
By the two people in it. We deliberately do not convert anything into a common unit, because the moment we set the rate, we decide whose work is worth less.
What happens if someone does not follow through?
You can back out any time before it is done, with no penalty. No-shows get written down, whoever runs it follows up, and people who keep doing it lose access. There are no public ratings: a five-star average on your neighbor is a worse instrument than a conversation.
Do I owe taxes on a barter exchange?
We are not your accountant, and we will not pretend otherwise. Barter can be reportable, particularly when it happens in the course of a trade or business. We issue no tax forms and assign no dollar values to anything. If you are trading at any real scale, talk to a professional.
What do you do with my data?
Nothing is sold and there are no ads. We collect only what an exchange needs. Your exact address is never shown to another member. You can delete your account and your history at any time.
My block is quiet. Is it worth joining?
Maybe not yet, and we will tell you if it is quiet rather than show you an empty page. In the meantime there is Restor8 on Fridays and the workshops at Bailey’s Cafe, both of which run whether or not your block is busy.
Who decides how a pool is run?
One person by name, often somebody from a partner organization. The rules are set in the open, the neighbors in that pool can remove whoever runs it, and the rules are written down and shared before anyone joins.
Is my skill valuable enough?
Moving help, childcare for one evening, a ride, a haircut, a hem, someone to explain a form. If you can do a thing a neighbor would otherwise pay for or go without, that is the whole bar.
Our mission
What we believe
Reciproc8 isn’t just an app. It’s an infrastructure for collective empowerment. We’re building a space where exchange, trust, and belonging replace transactions and paywalls.
Reciprocity
Give and receive in equal measure.
Everyone has something to offer. Exchanges are mutual, not transactional. When you give, you receive. When you receive, you give back. That’s how community sustains itself.
Access Without Barriers
Your bank account shouldn’t limit your learning.
We believe people should be able to access skills, services, and knowledge without money. Wealth isn’t what’s in your wallet. It’s what your community can share.
Trust Through Accountability
Reliability builds relationships.
Trust isn’t given. It’s earned. Through honest communication, showing up when you say you will, and handling harm transparently, we build a community where people feel safe to exchange.
Joy in Exchange
This should feel good.
Exchanges aren’t obligations. They’re opportunities. Every skill share is a chance to connect, learn, and find joy in what you already know how to do.
Regeneration
Giving leads to receiving. Receiving sustains giving.
This is a regenerative economy. When one person shares, another grows. When that person shares forward, the cycle continues. Community thrives through cyclical support.
Partners & supporters
Bailey’s Cafe
Our fiscal sponsor. A 501(c)(3) serving underserved communities through cultural, educational and creative programs.
Mona Ventures
Connects nonprofits and small businesses with affordable funding, grants and hands-on coaching.
Invest in community
We are a nonprofit. A tax-deductible donation keeps the app free for everyone, funds skill shares and community events in NYC, and deepens our roots in the neighborhoods that need alternative economic models most.
donate →
four doors
Pick the one that describes you.
NEIGHBORS
Trade something this week
Tell us what you'd trade and what you need. Forty seconds, no account.
Start →
PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS
Host a table or run a pool
Cafes, libraries, churches, schools. Lend a room, a shelf, or a Friday evening.
Partnership form →
FUNDERS
Read the brief, see where it goes
How the program works, how we measure it, and where the money goes. Tax-deductible via Bailey’s Cafe.
Request the brief →
CONTRIBUTORS
Give the project what you'd give a neighbor
Menders, translators, drivers, developers, stewards. It gets written down like any other trade.
See what we need →
who runs this
Meet Jonathan Sims
Founder & Executive Director
In just the past year, I’ve tried BJJ, Muay Thai, chess, Warhammer 40k, reading clubs, and Pilates (that one was short-lived). I love learning new things, but let’s be honest: it gets expensive. Classes, coaches, gear... it adds up fast. And in a city like New York, meeting people through shared passions is harder than it should be. That’s when the idea hit me:
“What if we could trade what we already know to learn something new, without money getting in the way?”
Reciproc8 started right here in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. What began as a simple question became a platform, then a nonprofit, and now a growing movement of people who believe that everyone has something valuable to offer.
Through mutual exchanges and gifts between neighbors, we’re not just helping people save money. We’re helping them find connection. Real exchanges. Real relationships. Real community.
What you have to offer already has value. Come prove it.
- 501(c)(3) via Bailey’s Cafe
- community-governed
- no data sold
Jonathan Sims
founder & executive director · bed-stuy
One App. No Cash. Infinite Connections.