Bike workshop in full spin

Whare Bike co-founder Ash Holwell. PHOTO / FILE

A young Whangarei man is harnessing his passion for bicycles in a social enterprise that combines elements of business, community and charity.

Ash Holwell acquired his love of bikes during a two-year stint in Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

When he returned to Northland he set up Whare Bike, a community bicycle workshop in a long-empty warehouse. Whare Bike is open every Thursday from 4-7pm at 1 Woods Rd, near the old railway station.

Anyone can use the space to work on their bikes or get help with repairs in exchange for a small koha. The whare's volunteers have reconditioned old bicycles donated by the refinery and given them away to people who "really, really need a bike".

"It's about people having a relationship with the machines they're riding and empowering people to work on their own machines. The opposite of throwing things away is having the ability to fix them."

Mr Holwell said his greatest moment at Whare Bike came after he taught a woman to fix a puncture.

"She did for the first time, then someone walked in with a flat tyre and she showed him how to fix it. She went from being a learner to a teacher in the space of half an hour."

Whare Bike has been running for two years in a warehouse owned by Mr Holwell's father and has just started paying rent. The space is also used by Whangarei Community Circus, two food co-ops and a comic store. The building had been empty for four years and might never have had a commercial tenant again.

Mr Holwell was one of 24 groups and individuals taking part in a four-month development programme for social enterprises run by the Akina Foundation and the Far North District Council.

A social enterprise is a business-charity hybrid, often set up to tackle social or environmental issues. Examples include Kaitaia's Community Business and Environment Centre (CBEC) and Akau, a furniture design business in Kaikohe.

Participants in the course took part in a series of weekend workshops spread over four months in Kerikeri, Rawene, Kaitaia and Kaeo. The aim was to develop their leadership and business skills and learn how to turn a social enterprise idea into a sustainable business.

The participants were able to showcase their ideas at an August 21 expo at the Kerikeri RSA marking the end of the course.

They included plans for a food hub distributing locally grown organic produce, a Whangaroa reforestation project, and a bee-keeping co-op.

Mr Holwell said the course gave him a chance to think about how to make Whare Bike sustainable and how to generate new revenue streams.

"It gave me the ability to spend two solid days a month focusing on it. Normally I'm swamped by kids wanting their bikes fixed."

CBEC has an informal joint venture with Whare Bike. Starting this spring it is planning regular community bike workshops at its Pukepoto Rd base in Kaitaia.

Go to http://www.scribd.com/doc/274775385/Far-North-Thrive-Expo-2015-Booklet for more information.