Starting a Nonprofit

IMPORTANT! Spokes is not accepting new memberships at this time.

Thinking about starting a nonprofit? 

Similar to starting any business, establishing a successful and impactful nonprofit takes planning, research, time, money, and an incredible amount of fortitude.

At Spokes, we strongly believe that the decision to start a nonprofit should not be taken lightly. There are between 1300-2700 nonprofits in San Luis Obispo County — too many for them all to be effective. Often, there are other ways to achieve your goals with greater efficiency. We’d love to discuss your ideas before you get started to help you save time and money.

From time to time, Spokes offers the class “So You Want to Start a Nonprofit?” to teach you what a nonprofit is and isn’t, nonprofit structure, steps involved in forming a nonprofit, business plans, up-front costs and other options if you decide not to incorporate. 

In the meantime, here are some resources to guide your research. 

• How to Start a Nonprofit
• The Challenges of New Nonprofits
• Starting with Collaboration
• Unincorporated Nonprofit Associations
• Types of Charitable Organizations
• Steps to Starting a Nonprofit
• Ten Nonprofit Funding Models
• Assessing the Need
• What Are the Different Types of Charitable Vehicles?
• Charitable Planning Guide
• Eight Great Alternatives to Starting a Nonprofit
• Attorney General’s Guide for Charities: Best practices for nonprofits that operate or fundraise in California
• Fiscal Sponsorship
  • What is Fiscal Sponsorship?
  • Tips for Nonprofits – Fiscal Sponsorship (Video)
  • Fiscal Sponsorship for Nonprofits
  • Fiscal Sponsorship a Balanced Overview

We hope to hear from you!