Last weekend was Centerfest in Durham. It was fantastic to see the downtown streets filled with people, art, and music (and fair food). I was there both days, talking to artisans, enjoying bluegrass, and working in the Smoffice.
Tag Archives: Smoffice
Let The Smoffice Begin!
As a young, working writer who has had a variety of jobs and lived in a number of different places, I’m used to big transitions. Like many of my friends, I’ve never lived in the same home for more than two years (since I first left home for college), and I love the excitement of moving to a new place and starting fresh.
Beach bonfire with friends at Herring Cove in Provinctown, MA.
Still, my move last week felt particularly dramatic. One day I was a poet on fellowship in Provincetown Massachusetts, watching the ocean for whales and wearing a scarf and boots in the chilly spring weather. The next day (literally), I became an entrepreneur in Durham, NC! Mike, Yuri (our cat), and I drove down the east coast early last week, and we arrived in North Carolina just in time for the launch party of The Smoffice (“The World’s Smallest Office”), which will be The Makery’s homebase for the next six months.
The Smoffice in Beyu Caffe, Durham, NC.
The event was great fun. There were about 45 local business owners, entrepreneurs, and elected officials there to congratulate The Makery and wish us luck. Everyone was very welcoming, and there was even a ribbon cutting (complete with tiny sewing scissors!) Notice that I’m wearing corduroy pants in the 90 degree weather…
Me with Matthew Coppedge and Adam Klein, the Durhamites behind The Smoffice contest.
Yes, we did fit 11 people in there!
I wish that Brita and Krista could have been there too, but Mike and my parents were there for support, and the whole Sister Team was there in spirit. Mike also took some pictures of our drive down with Yuri in the car, but the memory card for his camera is malfunctioning and we unfortunately haven’t been able to upload the photos…
Now I’m enjoying settling into my spot here in the window of Beyu Caffe. If you come by for a visit you can stare at me through the big window and we can gesticulate to each other. Better yet, I’ll invite you into The Smoffice for a great view of downtown Durham in action.
SMOFFICE 2012!
The Makery was just announced as the winner of the Smoffice: The World’s Smallest Office contest, and we are beside ourselves with excitement! As the winning start-up company, we will receive six months in a 20 sq. ft. office space located in downtown Durham’s Beyu Caffe, six months in a swanky downtown condo, and access to local business connections for resources like accounting, legal services, and web development. It still seems too good to be true! You can watch the video tour below.
The Smoffice is sponsored by Downtown Durham and the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce, which both seem to be run by young, smart, and super-cool people who are enthusiastic about the Durham’s growth and potential as a hub for both entrepreneurship and the arts. These people are full of great ideas to promote new businesses — take a look at the successful Bull City Start-up Stampede program as well.
This opportunity couldn’t have come at a more perfect time for us (right on the heels of our Kickstarter campaign!), since we’re now ready to begin development for our website and to start things moving toward our beta launch.
We move into the Smoffice on May 1st — only two weeks from today. If you live in Durham, we hope you’ll stop in and pay us a visit!
Keep your fingers crossed!
Remember our post about running for Smoffice? The winner is announced tomorrow! Keep your fingers crossed….we’re anxiously awaiting the results! 
We are trying to get a Smoffice!!
The team has entered a really cool and quirky competition from The Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Durham. If you win, you get a 20 square ft office space in Beyu Caffe, a great coffee and meeting spot in in the heart of downtown Durham’s 5-Points area. Oh, AND 6 months free rent in a condo a short walk away from your new headquarters.
The Smoffice also has a pretty neat website — check out Matthew and Adam’s video tours of the office space and condo.
It would be an awesome opportunity, and well timed, as I’m returning back to the great state in just a few weeks! And although my parents have generously offered me the den to stay in while I’m home…It kind of smells like dogs in there.
We had a great time applying for this competition, because we got our creative video juices flowing again, and Brita formatted our one-page business plan so it looks very artistic and beautiful!
Check out our video, and if you want to give some oomph to our campaign, please ‘Like’ our video on The Smoffice Facebook page!
