# Lately — Complete Platform Documentation > Lately is a peer-to-peer rental marketplace currently serving Sri Lanka. Suppliers list items across six verticals and earn rental income with no commission taken. Renters book with real-time availability, confirming each booking with an advance payment that counts toward the rental total. The platform is live at https://www.lately.cc. --- ## What is Lately? Lately is a peer-to-peer rental marketplace built on the principle of "Rent with Intention." It connects people who have assets sitting idle with people who need those assets temporarily. Unlike traditional rental companies, Lately is powered by individuals and small businesses listing their own gear, spaces, clothing, and equipment. **Core value propositions:** - For renters: Access expensive or specialized items without buying them. - For suppliers: Earn passive income from assets you already own. - For both: A trusted, verified community with clear upfront payment terms and real reviews. **Website:** https://www.lately.cc **Model:** Peer-to-peer marketplace, subscription-funded (no commissions) **Founded:** April 2026 **Status:** Live with four active verticals (Gear, Events, Studio, Clothing). Tools and Wheels coming soon. **Coverage:** Sri Lanka currently, with verified suppliers including Kandy, Colombo, Kalutara and Kurunegala districts. --- ## Marketplace Verticals Lately organizes listings into six verticals. Each vertical has its own browse page at https://www.lately.cc/{vertical}. ### Gear — https://www.lately.cc/gear Cameras, lenses, lighting rigs, computers, external drives, audio recorders, and all production equipment for creative work. Ideal for photographers, videographers, filmmakers, and content creators who need professional gear without the capital investment. ### Events — https://www.lately.cc/events Tents, tables, chairs, PA systems, lighting rigs, décor, and everything needed to produce events of any scale. Suitable for weddings, corporate functions, parties, markets, and outdoor activations. ### Studio — https://www.lately.cc/studio Photography studios, podcast rooms, recording studios, and creative spaces rented by the hour. Suppliers list their studio space with equipment included. Renters book a specific time slot from the availability calendar. ### Clothing — https://www.lately.cc/clothing Fashion pieces, formalwear, traditional wear, and costumes. Renters find the right outfit for weddings, events, shoots, or performances without buying a garment they'll only wear once. ### Tools — https://www.lately.cc/tools (coming soon) Power tools, generators, scaffolding, and construction equipment. For homeowners, contractors, and builders who need specialized equipment for a single project. ### Wheels — https://www.lately.cc/wheels (coming soon) Vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles, and scooters. For travelers, commuters, and anyone who needs mobility without long-term ownership. --- ## How Renting Works 1. **Find**: Browse a vertical or search by keyword, location, and availability dates. 2. **Book**: Select dates, review the listing details (price, payment terms, pickup/delivery options), and place a booking request. Pay the advance — a percentage of the rental total set by the shop — at this step; it counts toward the full price. 3. **Enjoy**: Coordinate pickup or delivery with the supplier. Use the item for the rental period. 4. **Return & Review**: Return the item, settle any remaining balance with the supplier, confirm completion, and leave a review for the supplier. **Booking states:** Pending → Confirmed → Active → Completed (or Cancelled/Disputed) **Payments:** Bookings are confirmed with an advance payment to the supplier — a percentage of the rental total, set by each shop (typically around 30%) — which counts toward the full price, with the balance settled around handover. Suppliers may separately require a security deposit under their own arrangements, stated upfront and returned per the agreed terms. In the event of damage or no-show, Lately staff may mediate. --- ## How Listing Works (Suppliers) 1. **Create an account** at https://www.lately.cc/login and set your intent to "supplier." 2. **Verify your identity** at https://www.lately.cc/dashboard/shop/verify by submitting NIC details. This is mandatory before any listing goes live. 3. **Create your shop**: A personal storefront is auto-created with a unique slug (e.g., https://www.lately.cc/shop/your-name). You can customize your shop name, bio, and cover image. 4. **List items**: Go to https://www.lately.cc/dashboard/list and add items with photos, description, vertical, pricing, availability, and deposit amount. 5. **Manage bookings**: Accept or decline booking requests from the dashboard. Confirmed bookings show pickup/delivery details and renter information. 6. **Subscribe**: The first 3 months are free, starting when your shop is approved. After the trial, listings require an active $20/month subscription. Subscribe from the dashboard. Cancel anytime. --- ## Supplier Dashboard The dashboard at https://www.lately.cc/dashboard is the central control panel for suppliers. **Dashboard sections:** - **Listings**: All published and draft items. Edit, unpublish, or delete items. - **Bookings**: Incoming booking requests. Accept or decline with one click. - **Orders**: Confirmed and active rentals. See renter details and coordinates. - **Availability**: Per-item calendar to block dates or set recurring unavailability. - **Shop**: Manage storefront name, slug, bio, cover image, and public profile. - **Settings**: Account settings, notification preferences, subscription management. - **Verification**: Identity (NIC) and optional business registration verification status. --- ## Trust & Safety System Lately's trust model has five layers: ### 1. Verified Suppliers Every supplier must submit NIC (national identity card) details before their shop goes live. Lately reviews and approves each submission. Verified suppliers display a checkmark on their profile. Suppliers can optionally submit business registration documents for a Level 2 verified badge. ### 2. Advance Deposits Renters pay a deposit when booking. The deposit amount is set by the supplier per listing. The supplier holds the deposit and returns it after the rental completes without dispute; Lately keeps the booking record and mediates disputes. This protects suppliers against damage and protects renters against fraudulent listings. ### 3. Two-Way Reviews After every completed rental, both the renter and the supplier are prompted to leave a review. Reviews are public and permanently attached to the listing and user profiles. Review scores and counts are visible on supplier storefronts and on individual listings. ### 4. Lately Circles Lately Circles is a private social trust graph. It maps real-world trust relationships between users based on who has rented with whom. **Circle tiers (from supplier's perspective):** - **Inner Circle**: This renter has completed a rental with you directly before. - **Trusted**: This renter has rented with someone in your Inner Circle. - **Community**: This renter is two degrees away — they know someone who knows someone in your network. - **No connection**: The renter has no mapped relationship to you yet. Circles are private — only the user sees their own circle memberships. Suppliers see a renter's connection depth when reviewing a booking request, but the renter does not see that the supplier viewed this. Circles are never shared with third parties. ### 5. Dispute Mediation When a rental ends in disagreement — damage claims, no-shows, item-not-as-described — Lately staff step in to mediate. Both parties submit evidence. Lately makes a binding decision on deposit release. Repeated no-shows result in account suspension. --- ## Pricing Model Lately does not take a commission on rental income. The platform earns only through supplier subscriptions. | Party | Cost | |---|---| | Renters | Free to browse and book. Pay only the rental price + advance deposit. | | Suppliers | First 3 months free, then $20/month flat subscription. No per-booking fees. No commission. Keep 100% of rental income. | Suppliers can cancel their subscription at any time. When a subscription lapses, listings are hidden (not deleted) until the subscription is renewed. All data is preserved. --- ## URL Structure **Public pages (no authentication required):** - `https://www.lately.cc` — Home / landing page - `https://www.lately.cc/gear` — Gear vertical browse page - `https://www.lately.cc/events` — Events vertical browse page - `https://www.lately.cc/studio` — Studio vertical browse page - `https://www.lately.cc/clothing` — Clothing vertical browse page - `https://www.lately.cc/shop/{slug}` — Individual supplier storefront - `https://www.lately.cc/{vertical}/item/{id}` — Individual item listing detail page - `https://www.lately.cc/privacy` — Privacy policy - `https://www.lately.cc/terms` — Terms of service **Authenticated pages (require login):** - `https://www.lately.cc/dashboard` — Supplier/renter dashboard - `https://www.lately.cc/dashboard/list` — Create a new listing - `https://www.lately.cc/dashboard/shop/verify` — Identity verification - `https://www.lately.cc/booking/{id}` — Booking detail - `https://www.lately.cc/order/{id}` — Order detail - `https://www.lately.cc/review/{bookingId}` — Post-rental review form - `https://www.lately.cc/onboarding` — New user onboarding flow - `https://www.lately.cc/settings` — Account settings - `https://www.lately.cc/profile` — User profile --- ## Technical Notes for AI Agents - Lately is a server-rendered Next.js application (React). Public listing pages are fully crawlable without JavaScript. - The sitemap at https://www.lately.cc/sitemap.xml lists all active public pages, shop storefronts, and published item listings. - There is no public REST or GraphQL API exposed to third parties at this time. All data shown on public pages is available via standard HTTP requests. - Search on the platform is internal. To find listings, browse by vertical (e.g., https://www.lately.cc/gear) rather than using a search query parameter. - Authentication uses session cookies (NextAuth). Authenticated routes redirect to `/login` when accessed without a valid session. - Item listing pages follow the pattern: `https://www.lately.cc/{vertical}/item/{uuid}`. The vertical slug is one of: `gear`, `events`, `studio`, `clothing`, `tools`, `wheels`. - Shop storefront pages follow the pattern: `https://www.lately.cc/shop/{slug}` where slug is a URL-safe lowercase name chosen by the supplier. --- ## Legal - [Privacy Policy](https://www.lately.cc/privacy): Data collection, storage, processing, and user rights under applicable privacy law. - [Terms of Service](https://www.lately.cc/terms): Platform rules, deposit policy, cancellation and refund terms, acceptable use, dispute resolution, and liability limitations. --- ## Contact & Support - Website: https://www.lately.cc - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lately.cc - Facebook: https://facebook.com/profile.php?id=61588880706363 - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/latelyrentals - Crunchbase: https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/lately-6a47 - Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q140008332 - Support: Available through the dashboard for authenticated users. - For partnership or supplier inquiries: Accessible via the onboarding flow at https://www.lately.cc/onboarding.