Mixxer Community Makerspace

What Mixxer Community Makerspace does

Mixxer Community Makerspace is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization operating a single physical community makerspace at 1375 North Martin Luther King Junior Drive in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in the Innovation Quarter/Industry Hill neighborhood. Founded in 2011 (originating as the Winston Salem Hackerspace, formalized as Winston-Salem Mixxer, Inc. in 2014) by J. Alan Shelton and now led by Executive Director Elaine Lamson, the organization provides access to professional-grade fabrication tools and equipment across five core shops: a Woodshop (lathe, whittling, wood laser etching, CNC), a Metalshop (welding, fabrication, jewelry smithing, blacksmithing, metal casting, knife making), a Textile Studio (sewing, costuming, screen printing, leather work), Tech Labs (laser cutting, 3D printing, electronics, IoT, PC lab), and Art Studios. The organization serves individual community members, families, students (age 16+), and youth in grades 6–12 with a focus on equitable access regardless of experience or background.

The business model is multi-stream and typical of a community makerspace nonprofit. Earned revenue comes from tiered subscriptions — Individual ($55/month or $600/year), Family up to four members ($90/month or $999/year), and Student ($35/month or $360/year), plus one-month trial memberships — and from per-class fees ranging from $10 (e.g., Sketchbook Club) to $165 (Build a Copper Lamp) across disciplines such as welding, jewelry, woodworking, sewing, 3D printing, and bookbinding. Non-earned revenue includes donations, grants, and the Clarke STEAM Scholarship Fund, which supports a three-phase youth program (Spark Summer Camps, Ignite After School Programs, Inferno Open Labs) delivered both on-site and at partner locations such as churches and recreation centers. Go-to-market is community-led: free Saturday tours, word-of-mouth, an events/workshops calendar, a monthly Maker Minutes newsletter, and earned media coverage in the Winston-Salem Journal, YES! Weekly, Fox 8, and WFDD. Strategic partnerships — notably with Sawtooth School for Visual Art (co-located wood fire kilns), Cook Medical, Winston-Salem Dash (Dash Bash at Truist Stadium), How Are the Children, and Innovation Quarter — anchor programming, fundraising, and visibility. The organization is independently governed by a board of directors, has no parent company or institutional investors (EIN: 47-2272568), and operates with 1–10 employees from a single facility.

Name

Mixxer Community Makerspace

Legal name

Winston-Salem Mixxer, Inc.

Website

https://wsmixxer.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Mixxer Community Makerspace is a Winston-Salem, NC-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides equitable access to professional-grade fabrication tools, classes, and youth STEAM programming across wood, metal, textile, digital, and art studios for individual members, families, students, and grades 6–12 youth.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Makerspace and Maker Education

akta.pro primary industry

Makerspaces & Fab Labs (Open Build Studios) (EDAMADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Crafts & Maker Arts (Ceramics, Textiles, Jewelry, Mixed Media) (EDAMAAAD), 3D Printing, CAD & Digital Fabrication Programs (EDAMADAH)

Keywords

• Community makerspace
• Maker education
• STEAM youth programs
• Workshop memberships
• Hands-on maker classes

Headquarters

HQ city

Winston Salem

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: Monthly, annual, and one-month membership plans providing access to all spaces and tools during open hours, plus tool training, safety gear, class discounts, and member events. Multiple tiers for individuals, families, and students.
2. Class and Workshop Fees: Per-class fees ranging from $10 to $165 for various maker skills including welding, jewelry making, woodworking, sewing, 3D printing, and more.
3. Donations and Grants: 501(c)(3) nonprofit relying on donations, grants, and scholarship funds including the Clarke STEAM Scholarship Fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Mixxer Community Makerspace is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides shared access to professional fabrication tools across five workshops (Woodshop, Metalshop, Textile Studio, Tech Labs, and Art Studios). It sells tiered Individual, Family, and Student memberships (monthly, single-month, and annual) that include on-demand safety training, plus paid classes and workshops ($10–$165) covering maker skills such as welding, woodworking, jewelry smithing, sewing, and 3D printing. It also delivers youth STEAM programming (Mixxer Monday, Spark Summer Camps, Ignite After School Programs, Inferno Open Labs, and the Clarke STEAM Scholarship Fund).

Product overview

Mixxer Community Makerspace is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) makerspace that operates as a single, unified physical space rather than a software platform. The organization provides access to tools, technology, and knowledge through its core shops (Woodshop, Metalshop, Textile Studio, Tech Labs, and Art Studios), complemented by educational classes and workshops. The company offers tiered membership plans (Individual, Family, and Student) that grant access to the space, tools, and machine training. Youth programming includes Mixxer Monday, summer camps, after-school programs, and the Clarke STEAM Scholarships fund. Together, these products and services form a comprehensive community workshop ecosystem that supports makers of all ages and skill levels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Woodshop Shared-access woodshop offering traditional wood fabrication, lathe work, whittling/carving, wood laser etching, and wood CNC cutting and routing for makers and students.
• Metalshop Shared metalshop providing welding, metal fabrication, jewelry smithing, blacksmithing, metal casting, and knife making for members and class participants.
• Textile Studio Shared textile studio equipped with sewing machines and large workspaces for sewing, costuming, screen printing, tie dye, and leather working.
• Tech Labs Digital fabrication labs featuring laser cutting, 3D printing, an electronics workbench, IoT projects, and a PC lab with various design programs.
• Art Studios Shared art studios offering a clean workspace, a dirty workspace, Silhouette cutting machines, and a general crafts space for members.
• Classes and Workshops Paid instructor-led classes and workshops covering maker skills including welding, woodworking, jewelry making, sewing, 3D printing, bookbinding, and leather work, priced individually and available to non-members and members (with member discounts).
• Membership Plans Subscription memberships that grant access to all spaces and tools during open hours, on-demand safety and machine training, member-only events, and discounts on classes; available as Individual, Family (up to 4 members), and Student tiers on monthly, single-month, or annual cadence.
• Youth STEAM Programs STEAM education programs for grades 6–12 including Mixxer Monday drop-in sessions, youth and family classes, summer camps, after-school programs, and internship opportunities, offered on-site and off-site through partner locations.
• Clarke STEAM Scholarship Fund Need-based scholarship fund supporting youth participation in Mixxer's STEAM programs across a three-phase model: Spark Summer STEAM Camps, Ignite After School Programs, and Inferno Open Labs.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Winston-Salem DashflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 October 2026Mixxer, in partnership with Cook Medical and the Winston-Salem Dash, will transform Truist Stadium into Dash Bash - a one-day celebration featuring North Carolina's largest combat robotics competition, hands-on demonstrations, local artists and makers, educational exhibits, and interactive experiences for all ages.
• Sawtooth School for Visual ArtcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Sawtooth School for Visual Art permanently relocated its two wood fire kilns from the North Carolina Museum of Art to Mixxer Community Makerspace. This partnership secures the future of wood firing in Winston-Salem and adds a hybrid kiln to Sawtooth's ceramics program.
• How Are the ChildrencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMixxer partners with How Are the Children to provide free activities and events for youth in the community throughout the summer. Activities are listed on both HATC's website and Mixxer's website.
• Innovation QuarterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMixxer is featured in Innovation Quarter's coverage of the maker movement in Winston-Salem, highlighting the organization's role in growing the local maker community.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Fab Foundation: Global organization that supports the Fab Lab network of digital fabrication labs; broader incumbent that frames and enables community makerspaces like Mixxer through standards and shared resources.

Direct peers

• The Crucible: Oakland, CA industrial-arts nonprofit offering classes and open-shop access across welding, woodworking, jewelry, ceramics, and digital fabrication — a direct peer on the education-plus-shared-shop model.
• NYC Resistor: Brooklyn hackerspace/makerspace providing members access to 3D printers, laser cutters, electronics, and textiles plus classes — a closely aligned community-led makerspace peer.
• Artisan's Asylum: Large community makerspace in Somerville, MA offering shared shops (wood, metal, textiles, electronics), classes, and memberships — directly comparable multi-discipline model to Mixxer but at materially larger scale.
• HeatSync Labs: Mesa, AZ community makerspace offering shared shop access and classes across multiple maker disciplines on a membership and donation-funded model.
• HacDC: Washington DC community hackerspace providing members access to electronics, fabrication tools, and educational workshops — a nonprofit peer in the shared-shop/community model.

Others

• TechShop (legacy): Former for-profit chain of community makerspaces that closed in 2017; serves as a cautionary reference case on the unit economics of paid makerspaces at scale.
• Make Community: Operator of Maker Faire and media around the maker movement; adjacent ecosystem player that drives awareness and community for makerspaces like Mixxer without operating shops directly.
• ClassPass: Subscription aggregator for in-person classes and studios — not a makerspace but a comparable recurring-membership access model for adult enrichment classes, relevant as a competitive or partnership reference point.

Regional players

• Sawtooth School for Visual Art: Winston-Salem visual arts school and Mixxer partner that relocated kilns onto Mixxer's site; offers overlapping arts/ceramics classes in the same geography, making it a regional complement and partial competitor for craft education.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCdFGkA4sb4noCPcySO0N_0Q
• Facebookfacebook.com/MixxerCommunityMakerspace
• Instagraminstagram.com/mixxercommunitymakerspace
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mixxer-community-makerspace

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mixxer Community Makerspace