The purpose of this Guide is to help you navigate the financial planning and marketing process for your co-op. There is really no distinction between what your business plan and/or financing proposals need in order to get approved by financiers and what your co-op needs in order to succeed. As a general rule: whatever is of priority to potential financiers is also important for your co-op’s business success.
This guide is divided into two sections. The first, Preparing Your Financing Strategy, describes the various forms of financing available to a worker co-op and their characteristics. It discusses concepts and issues to consider regarding financing options when putting together a financing strategy for your start-up or already-operating worker co-operative.
The second section, Marketing Your Financing Proposal, addresses the issues and processes involved in presenting financial proposals to prospective financiers.
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