Woodworking Co-op

co-op to buy tools or a shop to use them?

-- Debt is nothing more than the 21st Century's form of slavery.

I’m thinking an actual shop. I read an article not long ago about a group in Boston. They have a shop and several members who share the shop space. Every member is his own boss but the jobs,( whether it be a kitchen or furniture piece or architectural), are billed to the customer through the shop as a whole. The individuals are payed through the shop as contractors on a 1099. If a job is big enough , they help one another out to complete the project, making payment arrangements on a case by case basis.
Apparently, there is a core group of guys who take turns every quarter as co-op business mgr. and when a bench or shop space is free, they bring in another member periodically by a vote of the existing members. Whatever tools you bring into the co-op, you leave with when (if) you leave the group. This particular co-op has been going now since the early nineties, I believe. So far, it seems to work, although I’m sure it has it’s issues.
Anyone else familiar with anything resembling this?

-- Its not Rocket Surgery!

Sounds like a great idea. I’ll follow this post and see what develops. Where are you located? Interesting concept.

-- Jerry--A man can never have enough tools or clamps

I know Portland Oregon has a building with many artisans that share space in one building But I don’t remember it’s name.

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

Sounds like being married to a half dozen women at the same time. I’m sure there are some advantages, but also see where it would be tough to please them all. I’ve heard of co-op’s before, but not quite like that. Usually they share a large space. (You can rent a 15,000sq.ft. building a lot cheaper per sq. ft. then you can a 2,000 Sq. ft. space}. Each woodworker has his own alloted space and then shares some of the common space, and each woodworker has his own cliente’s. If the project is large enough, he may get help from some of the others, but mostly each is independent. They share the rent and overhead and will share the cost of someof the large stationary tools. (Example: A small shop may not be able to afford a 24” planer, or a large molding machine, but the co-op can go in together and purchase a large machine and it’s used by all. They all share in the purchase and they share in the maintance. Some co-ops will have a common office space with a receptionist taking care of all the incoming calls etc. There’s a lot more to it then that, but I’ve heard it’s worked in a number of areas. That’s one you better have a strong business plan before you venture into. Good luck and keep us posted.

-- John @ Myrtle Beach

I don’t know specifically about woodworking co-ops, but you might want to see if there’s something like TechShop in your area. The focus is more broad than just woodworking—it includes things like electronics and even software development.

A place called i3 just opened in my area, and I’ve been meaning to check it out. Members pay a $100 monthly fee for 24-hour access to the space and tools. I believe i3 itself is a non-profit, and most of the members are amateur hobbyists.

Here’s a list of similar facilities.