What is a Repair Cafe?
Started in Amsterdam in 2009, over 2500 Repair Cafés are now located worldwide, including two in our neighbouring towns of Thornbury and Meaford.
Basically a Repair Café is a free, volunteer-run meeting place that brings together people and ‘things’ to be repaired, often with a cup of coffee and treat to build a welcoming community. ‘Things’ can include clothes, small furniture, electrical appliances, bicycles, crockery, appliances, toys, jewellery, etcetera. Nothing with fuel or combustion engines are accepted.
Visitors must stay with their item to be repaired – it is not a drop off program. In some cases, a required part might be identified, and the visitor can return the following month to have it installed.
Volunteer specialists with repair skills help make the repair, if possible. No guarantees. Donations are accepted to build inventory for tools, typically used parts, storage systems and the like.
How does a Repair Café help?
Increase environmental awareness
The Repair Café helps the environment by reducing the number of items going to the landfill and increases general awareness of climate change mitigation activities.
Just look at our local landfill - we throw away vast numbers of ‘things’ with almost nothing wrong or that might need a simple repair. Sometimes it is just a small part – or a button – or a new cord – that keeps items out of the landfill and supports a circular economy.
Share skills
Many in our community are blessed with talents that can support the Repair Café as well as help mentor and learn from others. All ages are welcome to become volunteers and share skills.
Build community and demonstrate inclusivity
The Repair Café is a low-cost, barrier-free way to increase connection – over a cup of coffee or tea.
Mentor and train
Many have never learned to repair ‘things’ or get the joy out of making something usable again. It has become a lost skill that a Repair Café can help with.
What it isn’t?
The Repair Café does NOT compete with paid professional repair specialists but instead increases awareness that a ‘thing’ CAN be repaired. If it can’t be repaired at the Café, visitors are told, where possible, a name of a local professional.
For example, computers are not generally fixed but the Repair Café might have names of firms. Major clothing alterations are not accepted but help with a pant hem might be.
Visitors may not usually frequent repair specialists and may normally throw away broken ‘things’. At least a Repair Café shows there are possible alternatives.
How can you help?
Be a sponsor
- Donate coffee / tea and cookies
- Post and share the Repair Café posters
Be a fixer
- Share your skills to fix, teach, explain and coach
Be a greeter
- Help organize and day, such a register visitors and review guidelines and processes, guide individuals to Fixers, manage flow, track needs and gaps, monitor refreshments, get feedback.