He's spent a good chunk of his life in coffee shops, but Joe Solomon realized that the city's cafes aren't always conducive to those seeking a work space outside, well, their workplace.
The Taylor Books employee, who headed the addition of a used book room in its store last year, began searching for potential sites downtown that could house the city's first co-working space. The essentials? Wi-Fi and caffeine.
Many of Charleston's handful of cafes, Solomon said, "are all sort of overwrought with the music and distractions of our friends; it's not always great for getting stuff done."
Co-working spaces, popular in cities such as New Orleans, San Diego, Chicago and Boston, offer a spot where people can work on projects without the isolation and distractions that working from home often creates.
When Solomon inquired on Facebook if anyone would be interested in paying to have access to a co-working space, people from a slew of different careers responded favorably.
It wasn't long before Solomon reached out to Gina Puzzuoli, owner of Stray Dog Antiques at 219 Hale St., about his plan. While a co-working space could bring in the extra revenue her business needs, Puzzuoli admitted she had never heard of the term before.
"I was sort of amazed that people would really do this," she said, but she agreed to house the co-working space on the third floor of her store.
The historic building's natural light and original brick walls resemble co-working spaces Solomon has seen in Vancouver, Canada, and Burlington, Vermont.
"I think we're going to be building a different kind of zone in this space, to help people find synergy," Solomon said.
He and Puzzuoli hope to have the co-working space open by Feb. 1, but it will be relatively basic until a solid group of four or five members is established. "That would be an assurance that this could work, and we could grow the community from there," Solomon said.
Puzzuoli agreed.
"In the beginning, I see this kind of like a carrel in the library - sort of a nice little place to get out of your house and get the creative juices stirring," she said.
More than a dozen people have expressed interest in the space, Solomon said, which would charge $100 a month for rent with no required contract.
As they prepare to give tours of the space next week, the two are buying tables and chairs for the space, which is closed off by dividers from the rest of the third floor.
Solomon believes part of the interest stems from people who want to work "among others who are entrepreneurs, artists, professors and change-makers."
"I guess I like to find spaces where something of deeper potential seems possible, whether it's used books in the back of Taylor [Books] or co-working on the third floor of Stray Dog," Solomon said.
Those interested in joining the co-working space can email josolomon@gmail.com.
Reach Elaina Sauber at elaina.sauber@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-3051 or follow @ElainaSauber on Twitter.