During our first full year of operation, Como Craftcycle has demonstrated strong community demand for affordable creative reuse supplies, classes, and events.
Our nonprofit has the materials, volunteers, programming, and community interest.
The missing piece is a space that brings it all together.
We’ve demonstrated community demand and have simply outgrown our current scattered spaces.
Our own space will build on that proven model. Our ongoing operations are supported through retail sales, classes and workshops, memberships, grants, and individual giving. A larger, consolidated space will allow us to increase these revenue-generating activities while serving the community more efficiently.
The Need
Craftcycle’s rapid growth has created a bottleneck in operations that inconveniences and vastly hinders both donors and volunteers. We currently operate out of multiple locations due to lack of space at each. Donors are confused when we ask them to bring contributions to Garth, an office space far too small to hold the volume of donations we receive or the number of volunteers who want to help. We sell supplies out of the back corner of the Habitat ReStore, where no matter how full we cram our shelves, there is not room for all of our inventory. And we teach our classes in borrowed rooms, requiring us to haul our equipment all over town resulting in time lost that could be better spent serving and continuing growth.
Consolidating operations into one space better suited to our current and expected scale will give our community one place to go for all things Craftcycle:
- Donors will be able to contribute more easily at a location ready to receive.
- We will be able to more efficiently sort and price donations, rotating them directly into the storefront with minimal delay.
- Customers will be able to browse our full inventory of rescued materials.
- Volunteer time will be more effective and efficient, increasing impact per volunteer hour.
- More classes can be offered without working around other organization’s schedules.
- We will save time and materials by not having to bag and price every single item.
- We won’t spend time or money schleping inventory across town or packing personal vehicles full of supplies for classes.
- Makers will feel empowered to create in a welcoming space well stocked with materials and equipment.
Create the Space Campaign goal
We estimate that opening our own nonprofit creative reuse center will cost about $132,000. This includes $70,000 to renovate the location to our needs and buy shelves, signs, and other equipment. The remaining $62,000 will cover operating expenses–mainly rent, utilities and payroll–while we move and scale up.
What does that $132K include?
- $70K to build out our space (shelves/fixtures, signs, sales system)
- $62K for 3+ months of operating expenses (rent & utilities, payroll, accounting & other contractors, marketing, packaging/materials, technology, insurance)
We will achieve this goal through a combination of grants, sales at the ReStore boutique, classes and workshops, memberships, and individual contributions.
How You Help
Every donation brings us closer to opening the doors to Columbia’s first creative reuse center. With your help, Craftcycle will expand access to upcycled materials and enable more people to experience the joy of creativity.
Your gift helps us advance creative sustainability across mid-Missouri!
Suggested Donations for Maximum Impact
Lead Gifts of $5000+ will build out a welcoming classroom where hundreds of people will learn and create each year.
Major Gifts of $1,000+ provide shelving to keep thousands of pounds of donated materials organized and accessible.
Mid Level Gifts of $500+ buy rolling carts so volunteers can keep donations moving.
Supporting Gifts of $250+ purchases price stickers, tape, and merchandising supplies to prepare materials for their next creative life.
Have Questions?
To schedule an in-person meeting and learn more, please contact Lisa at lisa@comocraftcycle.org or 573-315-4109.
If you’re ready to donate now, please visit our Donor Box capital campaign: donorbox.org/craftcycle-space-campaign
