Monday, May 17, 2010
This is the first day of what I think should be an exciting journey. Three beautiful homes and a Baptist Church with some of the most beautiful workspace Sheboygan has to offer. I guess it should be. After all, it took nearly 50 years to prepare it for what I hope to become a great community for Sheboygan’s Creative Class.
People ask, “Is it just for artists?” Absolutely not, it’s for people who think out of the box....and certainly outside of the traditional office cubicle. I think there are a lot of creative people out there who just want to be near other creative people. To collaborate. To just stay fresh. To meet new and fun people. So here we go.
Two years later…
Who would have thought that in just over two years, such a new concept as the Jake’s Cafe Creative Community would now be home to over thirty businesses! While Jake’s continues to grow, it should come as no surprise that similar right brained creative communities have now been established around the country. We’re truly at the forefront of a burgeoning creative economy. Many of America's advances will come through the multi-disciplinary collaboration of creative thinkers found in communities such as ours. It's already happening at Jake's! Ask Johnsonville, American Orthodontics, Bemis, Plymouth Foam, and the Sheboygan County Economic Development Corporation to name a few.
I knew at some point, many of our members would come together, share/refer clients and work together to either solve tough problems or merely look for more efficient ways to help their customers. I just didn’t think it would happen so soon, nor did I realize how many of our members would actually buy services from one another! In any event, it’s working beyond expectations and we’re continuing to do great work in a great way.
As our community continues to grow and capture the imagination of local and regional businesses as a problem-solving destination, some of our tenants may eventually outgrow the cafe and have no other choice than to look for larger quarters. While it’s always tough to lose a good friend/member, it’s also quite gratifying to know that the Jake’s family may have had a little bit to do with their success. It’s all part of the plan.
