Startups

The Hacktory shuts down, ends ‘all programming for the foreseeable future’

Over the next few months, the West Philly makerspace plans to meet with its stakeholders to “find out what we want The Hacktory to become.”

West Philly makerspace The Hacktory, founded informally in 2007 by art and tech enthusiasts to offer formal instruction for aspiring makers, has shuttered its physical location at 3645 Lancaster Ave. and has ended all programming “for the foreseeable future.”

In an email sent to its members and stakeholders on Sunday, the organization’s board of directors said The Hacktory was short in rent given its income, and negotiated an early exit to its lease in May. The organization, which offered membership-based access to 3D printers, sewing machines and other equipment at the location, has ended all programs and is currently working on achieving its 501(c)3 nonprofit status and delivering on the lineup of classes StartUp PHL financed through a grant last summer.

“We’re looking forward to meeting with members, organizers, volunteers, and the general public in the next few months to find out what we want The Hacktory to become, and how we’ll go about getting there,” the statement read. “We’re in a somewhat unique position, being an organization with a rich history, an established base, but not currently tied to a physical location. We would like to note, however, that The Hacktory wasn’t fully self sustaining in its previous incarnation and we don’t expect to model our future on the past.”

Currently, the board is comprised of Sharp Hall, president; Philip Ryskalczyk, vice president; David Ryskalczyk, treasurer; and Imani Perry, board member. For eight years, designer Georgia Guthrie served as the organization’s executive director, until she stepped down in August 2017.

Guthrie said, in a guest post for Technical.ly, that sustaining maker activities in Philly had proved to be an uphill battle. This development would seem be another data point confirming that.

President Philip Ryskalczyk said there was no immediate date set for the public to have a chance to chime in on the future of the organization.

Before you go...

Please consider supporting Technical.ly to keep our independent journalism strong. Unlike most business-focused media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational support.

3 ways to support our work:
  • Contribute to the Journalism Fund. Charitable giving ensures our information remains free and accessible for residents to discover workforce programs and entrepreneurship pathways. This includes philanthropic grants and individual tax-deductible donations from readers like you.
  • Use our Preferred Partners. Our directory of vetted providers offers high-quality recommendations for services our readers need, and each referral supports our journalism.
  • Use our services. If you need entrepreneurs and tech leaders to buy your services, are seeking technologists to hire or want more professionals to know about your ecosystem, Technical.ly has the biggest and most engaged audience in the mid-Atlantic. We help companies tell their stories and answer big questions to meet and serve our community.
The journalism fund Preferred partners Our services
Engagement

Join our growing Slack community

Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!

Trending

The person charged in the UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting had a ton of tech connections

From rejection to innovation: How I built a tool to beat AI hiring algorithms at their own game

Where are the country’s most vibrant tech and startup communities?

The looming TikTok ban doesn’t strike financial fear into the hearts of creators — it’s community they’re worried about

Technically Media