The problem we ran into as our valet program grew was that new events assumed that bicycle valet would bring a new demographic.  While this may be true in the long run, a poorly advertised valet event will not have this desired ROI.

In Utah we charge the event.  $12 per hour, and an additonal hour per day for setup/breakdown.  This goes directly to a valet bike parking coordinator who makes $12 per hour.

 This also means we are in the black before it starts and the liability of advertising the service isn't ours -- the event now carries it.  So that way first time events aren't a waste of our time if no one shows.  

The rest of the event is staffed by volunteers and we accept donations, but as the number of bikes parked increases the donations per bike decreases.

At least for us, donations alone would never cover our costs for the level of service we provide.  Which also includes insurance, racks and transportation.

http://www.bicyclecollective.org/en/programs/valet-bike-parking/338-new-portable-valet-bike-parking-racks

We have enough racks to park 1000 bikes and made coat check tags that go up to 1000 too.  Sadly, people lose them, so paper tags might be in our future.  Dahon has some great paper tags.

http://www.bikecollectives.org/wiki/index.php?title=Valet_Bike_Parking

On Tuesday, July 17, 2012, Godwin ! wrote:
We normally do bike valet at one of our local farmers' markets also for free but leave a donation jar out, most people give a dollar or two but it's a nice way to keep the service free for those who need it and let others who can afford it give back (we've actually had complaints when we didn't have it out). Last summer however, we were asked to open the valet by a group running a large event in the city and they paid us an honorarium of $200 for the day, keep in mind however, we're a city of 1.2M and an oil centre so it might be a little inflated to Longmont.

.godwin



> Date: Tue, 17 Jul 2012 17:28:38 -0600
> From: rjkragerud@gmail.com
> To: thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
> Subject: [TheThinkTank] Bike Valet/Bike Parking services hourly rates?
>
> Bicycle Longmont jumped into the Bike Valet service field in 2010.
> Last year it really took off and this year is no exception. We are
> currently being asked to provide this service (previously for free) at
> many special events. We currently offer this service for free at
> Longmont's Farmers' Market where we park upwards to 175 bikes every
> saturday between 7am & 1pm.
>
> We don't have the volunteer capacity to handle all the events that are
> requesting our highly successful service. Also since providing the
> service it appears bike parking is becoming a "communitywide value".
>
> At any rate, like you, we're a cash strapped 501c3 and wondered who of
> the ThinkTank are charging for this service and what are your rates?
> Afterall it takes time and money to do good in the neighborhood!
>
> BTW we'd continue providing the Farmers' Market for free but would
> require anyone wanting to work a special event to have prior
> experience volunteering with our Farmers' Market, first.
>
> Thanks,
> Ryan Kragerud - President
> Bicycle Longmont
> _______________________________________________
> Thethinktank mailing list
> Thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
> To unsubscribe, send a blank email to TheThinkTank-leave@bikecollectives.org
> To manage your subscription, plase visit:
> http://lists.bikecollectives.org/listinfo.cgi/thethinktank-bikecollectives.org


--
Sincerely,

Jonathan Morrison
Executive Director
Bicycle Collective
2312 S. West Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84115
w: 801-328-2453
c: 801-688-0183
f: 801-466-3856
www.bicyclecollective.org

The mission of the Bicycle Collective is to promote cycling as an effective and sustainable form of transportation and as a cornerstone of a cleaner, healthier, and safer society. The Collective provides refurbished bicycles and educational programs to the community, focusing on children and lower income households.