For host spaces
Host a shelf in your space
A café, library, place of worship or community centre can run a Community Shelf. Here’s what it takes, and what we bring.
What your space needs
Wall space for a few racks
Three to eight shelves, numbered from the top, where neighbours can reach them during opening hours.
A staffed counter
Someone who can hand over held packets, take payment and record each sale in a few taps.
Someone to review
A person who approves new growers and checks posts before they go on a rack.
A payout routine
A regular day to pay growers what they’re owed, by Zelle or cash.
What we bring
Your own online shelf
Set up for your space on the Community Shelf software, which partners such as Bakes & Brews already run: live stock by rack, holds with pickup codes, a counter board and an “Owed to growers” report.
A setup guide
How to arrange and number the racks, label packets and run the counter routine.
Signs and label templates
Ready-to-print signs for the racks and labels growers can fill in at home or at your counter.
Help when you need it
Questions about the shelf go to us by email.
Getting started
- Write to us.Tell us about your space, your town and your opening hours.
- Plan it together.Racks, hours, who reviews posts and how you’ll pay growers.
- We set up your online shelf.Then we walk your team through the counter board.
- Open the shelf.Invite your first growers and put the signs up.
Questions hosts ask
Do we have to handle money?
Only at your own counter. Buyers pay you, and you pay growers on your schedule. Free items involve no money at all.
What can neighbours share?
Homegrown vegetables, herbs, greens and fruit. Home-made food needs a cottage food registration where the law requires one, so it stays off until that is in place.
Who checks quality?
Your team approves each grower once and reviews every post. Packets are sealed and labelled with the grower’s name and pick date, and anything past its best-before is pulled.
Do neighbours need an account?
Not to look, hold or take a free item. Growers sign in, so every packet has a real neighbour behind it.
What does it cost to run?
The software is built to run on the free tiers of mainstream cloud services, so running costs stay close to zero. Write to us and we’ll talk through your setup.
Can we run more than one location?
Yes. Each location has its own racks, opening hours and managers, and growers choose which shelves they bring packets to.