My shop just got knocked for chargers & keys for a single e-bike someone was kind enough to donate. 2 chargers, the keys, the locking mechanism will run $515, not including labor (me) to extract the battery...Then there's the $100 in stolen tools so far this month. The 6 cranksets that were split up so the homeless could steal mismatched half's of each leaving me with 6 mismatched orphans I can't sell. It's the same story with shifters, brakes, pedals, & indeed anything else you can think of. (This obscures the theft in a pile of parts under the guise of "inspecting")
All this is to say: "Crime used to be illegal." I can see the OP's Co-Op's position & believe me, If I thought I could get away with it from the Board of Directors, I'd go to the pre-Piggly Wiggly model & serve everybody from the other side of a Dutch-door. Sadly, that doesn't fit our brand or our mission.
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Another possibility is when it comes to service work, perhaps there is too much variability in incoming bikes that they can not keep suitable repair parts or labor skill on hand. I mean every brand has their proprietary hydraulic oil, hydraulic hose, olives, fittings, bleed kit & unique brake pads.
Bb30, PF30, GXP, BB386, Dub, Hollowtech? 83mm BB Shells, boost, super boost, 12mm thru-axle, 15mm thru-axle, "What's this? A 15mm thru-axle, front? Oy, ve!" Knowledgeable &/or skilled volunteers are few & far between. Bringing a promising volunteer up to speed can be a long & effort filled process.
I keep box's of various styles rim brake pads around but only a handful of B01S pads. I have a large pile of square taper, & maybe 1 each of the bottom brackets. I buy 6,7,8 speed chain in the 500 foot reel, 9 speed chain x25, 10&11 speed chain by the single, & have never bought a single 12 or 13.
Honestly, there's only so much any one shop can do to keep up with the innovation motivations of an entire industry when they are still supporting their clients bikes with 27" wheels or Schwinn S-5, S-6, S-7, tire sizes & unsealed bottom brackets.
I have no doubt the OP's Co-Op simply drew a line in the sand & said: "Enough is enough." So they could focus man-power & resources on supporting their customers bikes.
Last edited by base2; 09-14-22 at 09:05 AM.