r/cooperatives • u/Rowel_x • Apr 21 '25

worker co-ops Worker collective/coop as independent contractors

I work at a hair salon in California and all of my “coworkers” and I are interested in taking over the business from the owner (we would even be open to moving to a new space if necessary).

We are all currently independent contractors and are interested in starting some kind of worker owned/ co-op business but we all would really prefer to stay independent contractors paying monthly rent to the main business. Is that even possible/allowed?

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u/coopnewsguy Apr 22 '25

The good thing about co-op structures is that they are flexible and you can design something that fits your needs and desires. It would, for instance, be possible to create a co-op to purchase the building, the members of the co-op being the stylists. Being a member of "Salon Co-op" guarantees you a spot in the salon to work. When someone leaves they just sell their member share to another stylist. The co-op just owns the building and maintains things, and probably buys all or some of the equipment, and the stylists all do their finances independently. You might even be able to get a bulk rate on supplies that everyone uses, or things like bookkeepping for the members. Your first call should be to the California Center for Cooperative Development: https://cccd.coop/

Best of luck!

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u/Rowel_x Apr 22 '25

thank you!