I think that the specificity of the term coop is really important.  At a time when social and sharing economies are enjoying a powerful and totally rad resurgence its meaningful to link cooperatives to their true roots, especially here in Canada where coop history is so relevant to working class and immigrant communities.  Only a coop is called a coop. And a coop can be a place but is also more conceptually about how a place is organized. That being said I've never associated the term "shop" with consumerism or conventional commerce in terms of bike shops, but rather thought of it as a place where the wirk of coops and enps and nps operate - "workshop,"a place where folks go to make cool shit and fix things.

On 2013-12-05 2:24 PM, "sheldon mains" <sheldon@spokesconnect.org> wrote:
I agree--there are a variety of words to explain what we do.  However, I just wanted to help people avoid a legal problem one of our local community whole food stores got into. They had to change their name to Cooop until they got the offical OK to be a Coop.  

..............
Sheldon Mains
SPOKES Bike Walk Connect


On Thu, Dec 5, 2013 at 10:30 AM, Ron Kellis <ron.kellis@velocitycoop.org> wrote:
And there is always the dilemma of legal terms vs. colloquialisms. IMHO there is a time and place for both. As someone who once struggled to learn a second language, the legal difference would have been lost on me in Japanese and I probably wouldn't have cared. 

Many times I have tried in simple English to explain "We are not a regular bike shop." to a non-native English speaker who needed to get a bike fixed so they could get back and forth to work. A couple of times I've just gone ahead and done the work for them, labor "gratis". Probably opening myself up for a lawsuit, but such is the cost of a little bit of empathy.

Just my %.02

Ron 


On Thu, Dec 5, 2013 at 11:20 AM, sheldon mains <sheldon@spokesconnect.org> wrote:
Cooperative: Here in Minnesota (and in a lot of upper midwest states and I think a number of western states) Cooperative has a very specific legal term.  It is something that is owned cooperatively by consumers, workers or producers.  You can not be called a coop unless you met the legal definition and requirements (which I don't know and are very detailed).  We have a lot of consumer grocery cooperatives in the Twin Cities--specializing in "whole foods." Most of rural MN and parts of the suburbs are served by consumer owned electric utility cooperatives.  Producer cooperatives seem to have become very large; Land-0-Lakes is one.  In California I believe Sunkist is another.

Worker owned cooperatives are less common.  Two in my neighborhood are a cafe and one of the best retail bike shops in the Twin Cities-- The Hub Bicycle Cooperative.

To answer a question that may come up. A coop is NOT the same as a nonprofit.  They are totally different animals.

 

..............
Sheldon Mains
SPOKES Bike Walk Connect


On Thu, Dec 5, 2013 at 3:20 AM, Jerry <danceswithcars@gmail.com> wrote:
Do you call a coop a shop?

Implies sales instead of recycled and commerce instead of community, imo

Fwiw: wasn't there but program lit should have that unless done uncon / crunchy granola whiteboard style 8:/

Haven't a clue what this gadget thought I typed, so TIA for understanding anyways...


On Dec 3, 2013, at 17:03, wormsign@gmail.com wrote:

It was the coop in Ventura, CA

Enzo Loconte
Board Secretary
Bikerowave

On Dec 3, 2013, at 1:28 PM, David Eyer Davis <davey@bicyclecollective.org> wrote:

Hi Justin, all,
we weren't the shop in question, but at Salt Lake Bike Collective we teach a weekly mechanics class based out of the chapters of the park tool book, published here:
http://www.bicyclecollective.org/en/programs/classes/368-2013-park-tool-school-bicycle-mechanic-classes-slc


On Tue, Dec 3, 2013 at 2:23 PM, Justin Pogge <oldfieldcycles@gmail.com> wrote:

At bike bike this year there was a great workshop on doing a mechanic training course. I cannot remember the shop that did the workshop but they offered up their curriculum to anyone who wanted it. They took everyone's email but the documents never got emailed out. Anyone have them? Out remember who did the workshop?


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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.

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