Well it's up and running!

I just wanted everyone to know. I had a lot of help, both from people online
and from the wonderful Network of Bay Area Worker Cooperatives (nobawc.org).
So here's the company, if anyone's interested in a success story... six
months in, we're going strong!

yochai

www.techcollective.com

ps I just want to mention that I never saw these responses... I'm not sure
how I missed them! But thanks anyways!



Nora Madden wrote:
>
> Hey Yochai,
>
> My partners and I are in the start-up phase of a collective, so this is
> all
> fresh for me. Just off the top of my head, I would add the following:
>
> I am REALLY doubtful you could get a loan anywhere near that size for an
> untested business, unless it's from a very wealthy relative or the like.
> (Some of the business books mentioned below discuss various methods of
> capitalization.) I agree with James that it's probably best to start
> small,
> and then once you can prove you have some success, you can try approaching
> your local credit union (actually, you might make an appointment with a
> loan
> officer just to see what your future options might be). Before we decided
> to organize as a coop, two of us went to our local SCORE counselor; this
> might be worth doing, though we didn't get a lot out of it. Worker coops
> are tricky because most "mainstream" business folks don't know anything
> about them; but you're still running a business, so some of what they have
> to say will be applicable. (At least until the revolution.)
>
> Check out your local library, if you haven't. Let your reference
> librarian
> ask you lots of questions so they can help you. Sometimes they have good
> "how to start a local business" resources already gathered. Our local PL
> also has copies of "Putting Democracy to Work" and "We Own It"; if you
> can't
> borrow them, you might consider buying such books (there aren't many
> specific co-op business books, as far as I know) at Alibris or the like
> (of
> course, check your local used bookstore first!) General business books
> that
> we've found helpful are "Small Time Operator," "The Partnership Charter,"
> "Growing a Business" (good section on how it's better to start with less
> money) and many, many books put out by Nolo. A good reference librarian
> will also be able to help you find good online resources for worker
> cooperatives. You will have to figure out what your legal structure is
> going to be if you haven't yet (e.g. Partnership, LLC, Corporation, etc.)
> -
> when you have, there's a Nolo book to help you through the legal shmegal
> stuff (but good to check stuff with a lawyer).
>
> Make appointments to meet local accountants, bookkeepers, possibly bankers
> and attorneys. They will give you lots of advice, which you should try to
> receive as politely as possible; some of it is very helpful, and you will
> probably eventually hire the services of at least one or two of them
> (unless
> you have a CPA on staff). Get recommendations from the small-business
> people you know.
>
> Finally, it sounds like you are doing a lot of this yourself (you say "my
> plan," etc.). If your partners are really "in," figure out a way that all
> of you are doing the start-up legwork. Find a way to make it a collective
> process from the get-go; things may take a little longer, but you will be
> building important working relationships as you go. Try to not operate on
> assumptions, and together examine all of your deeply-held, probably
> unconcious beliefs about you have about business, money, relationships,
> etc.
>
> Best of luck to you!
>
> Nora
>
>
>
> On 10/7/06, james <news@...> wrote:
>>
>> > So I decided that I instead I would start my own co-op.
>>
>> instead of what? is this part of a thread I've missed?
>>
>> > Specifically, I would like it to be a Computer Retail and Service
>> store.
>> I expect something along the lines of
>> > a "mom 'n' pop" hardware store... but a little like CompUsa.
>>
>> It's possible that you could start this business in a smaller and less
>> risky way; for example, with fixing computers, you could advertise, and
>> go
>> round to people's houses; that way you won't need to pay rent on a shop,
>> and
>> it could be seen as an advantage in that it's more convenient for people.
>>
>> It also seems to me that you're far more likely to get a loan to have a
>> shop if you can show that you have a working business already.
>>
>> > Here's the other thing. I'm 23 years old---I know that this is young,
>> but this is what I want to do. I'm sure of it.
>> > Thus far, my plan is this:
>> > 1 Research how to build a cooperative business.
>> > 2 Build a Prospectus. Generate business data, etc.
>> > 3 Obtain some sort of loan (I'm thinking in the $100,000 range).
>> > 4 Find myself as many co-owners as I think I need (so far I have 3
>> besides myself willing to join).
>>
>> My experience is that you should assume you have *zero* people willing to
>> join - when they sign a piece of paper going in on a $100,000 loan with
>> you,
>> that's when they're willing to join.
>>
>> If you have an IndyMedia collective in your area, you might contact them;
>> it's likely to be a place where you will find people who are both
>> computer-literate, and likely to be interested in the idea of
>> worker-owned
>> cooperatives.
>>
>>
>
>

--
View this message in context:
http://www.nabble.com/Re%3A-How-do-I-start-a-worker-cooperative.-tf2400282.html#\
a13106258
Sent from the Worker Cooperative mailing list archive at Nabble.com.