Cooperative Development

Custom Collaborative develops worker-owned businesses. In support of equitable economic development and ownership opportunities for all, we train people in cooperative principles and incubate their employee-owned businesses.

Momoka, Cohort 5:

"I want to create fair, safe and equal work environment for us, for everyone. Nobody should experience the unfair treatment that I experienced. It is so important in our cooperative that everyone feel they are treated right and our voices to be heard."

A woman standing indoors against a plain beige wall, wearing a black sweater with gold buttons on the shoulders, a gold headband, and a necklace, with her right arm across her waist and her left hand resting near her right arm.

Create.
Collaborate. Innovate.

Two women smiling and engaging in conversation outdoors on a sunny day, with trees and a street in the background.

Custom Collaborative is actively partnering with a network of New York and international cooperative developers to strengthen systems that support women in collectively owning and managing their enterprises — advancing fair wages and equitable working conditions.

Our work also includes securing substantial patient capital so people can start and build strong businesses while receiving income. Our research shows that low-income people cannot simply “bootstrap” their way into stable business ownership, making this support essential.