Working towards a Sustainable Financial Future - 3/4/2022
On average, our 501(c)(3) Makerspace spends about $30,000 about $12,000 a month, we have enough cash flow to keep things going for the time being, but we clearly need to improve. Below you will find a brief background on where we’re at, a P&L statement for 2021.
If you want to know how or why to help, please click here!
Some Background
The long term goal is be financially viable through our core activities:
- Classes (22% 0f our income) help increase knowledge and provide a safe on-boarding experience to shared tools.
- Memberships (45% of our income) provide access to a shared shop space, tools, and community of makers.
- Studio Space (Licensing, 33% of our income) provides access within Maker Works to private workspace.
- Events (Previously 5% of our income) like The Great Maker Race introduce STEAM / DIY to large audiences.
We’re working on establishing additional relationships with community partners that help utilize our existing core activities, and funds that would support that. Once we’re stable, we have additional projects we’re looking to fund:
- Programs directly supporting BIPOC & Women in Making.
- Maker Bus to provide regular STEM/STEAM activities and opportunities outside of our space.
- Workforce Pipeline Development, Small Business Development, and Alternative/Post Incarceration opportunities.
Financial Details - Last Updated 3/4/2022
$104,652 = Cash On Hand as of 3/4/2022
We’re fortunate to have some runway thanks to some early donations from a local foundation. This number does not include any of the physical assets of Maker Works
$0 = DEBT as of 3/4/2022
Maker Works Community Workshops has no debt!
Profit & Loss: January 2021 - january 2022
Common Questions
How can I help?
We’re so glad you asked, please see our ‘How To Help’ post!
What happens if you run out of cash / do have to close?
We’ll announce at least two months prior to us permanently locking the doors and shutting the lights off.
Should I be concerned about purchasing an Annual Membership if you’re worried about closing?
We follow Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and are tracking what we’ve received and what we can treat as earned income. In other words: If you purchase a year membership and six months later we close, you’ll get 50% of your membership fee back. While it’s easy for anyone on the internet to write “Just trust us!”, we are happy to review our books with you. You can also pay in quarterly installments.
P&L: Under 41000 Grants and 41500 Cash Donation I see some significant contributions?
Those are one time anonymous donations that helped provide a runway while transitioning from Maker Works LLC, to Maker Works Community Workshops 501(c)(3).
P&L: 49000 Licensing Fees bumps up and down a lot, why is that?
Licensing payments tend to come in just prior to a month ending, or just after a month begins. Some licensees pay for two months at a time. On average in 2021 this comes out to around $5,700.
P&L: 61800 Wages sure is a big number, can’t we fire some staff?
Staff spend most of their time Maintaining Equipment, Teaching Classes, On-boarding new Members, or working towards increasing our revenue (see “How to Help”). Eliminating staff at this time would mean equipment breaks more often (higher expenses), classes don’t get taught (less income), or members can’t be helped (less income). We do not plan on ‘saving ourself to prosperity’, and in fact have a desire in the long term to increase wages and provide health benefits.
P&L: 74200 Rent Expense for September 2021 was $75,616!?
For a little over a year we were only paying half our rent due during a portion of the pandemic. Once we had a significant donation to help cover the back rent, we paid the back rent to our landlord. Other months are a little high/low due to a miscalculation. Our rent as of 2/27/2022 is $11,324.00.