London Bike Kitchen, a female and non-binary-led bike repair shop and occasional bike DIY space on London's Old Street, is running a GoFundMe campaign to save and reopen its self-service workshop space .
Founded and run by Jenni Gwiazdowski, who Cyclist spoke to in 2023, LBK opened in 2012 with a DIY focus. Elements of a more traditional bike shop emerged late in 2016, as the business weathered the disruption of the coronavirus lockdown and its various devastations to the bike industry.
The bike shop is currently open but the DIY area is closed, but Mr Gwiazdowski hopes to have raised £15,000 by the end of May (25% completed at the time of writing) ). This will allow your DIY space to reopen with a vibrant new space. Recruitment.
LBK will continue to be a female- and non-binary-led operation, first and foremost a place for riders to learn how to fix their own bikes. In addition to Gwiazdowski, mechanics Amy, Sylvie and Jamie will now lead tutorials and oversee workshop time.
Once the workshop is up and running, participants will have access to a workbench, all possible tools, a parts washer and, of course, mechanic support. Funds raised will go towards cleaning out the old workshop, installing new lighting, updating the tool inventory, overhead costs and redesigning the website.
You can learn more on LBK's website, sign up for the great Substack newsletter, or go directly to the GoFundMe donation page.