Hello all!
Alright, so I'm sure this has been posted to the list 54 times over.
But:
How do y'all make money?
More specifically: Our bike co-op has traditionally been, on the front end, a completely volunteer based earn-a-bike program. We have paid staff but aside from that money is not exchanged. We are considering selling bicycles, charging a per hour rate, and selling parts but we are afraid of alienating a large part of our population. How do you balance retaining your goals, ethics, ideologies - like promoting bicycle access, providing (largely) free transportation, anti-capitalist leanings, skill empowerment - with keeping your shop autonomous and self sustaining?
Thanks all! Apologies if this is an all to often repeated topic and feel free to ask for clarification.
Alex Recycle Ithaca's Bicycles. (RIBS)