Common Desk Opens First Coworking Location Outside Of Texas

Published on January 28, 2021 - By Allwork.Space - Press

• Texas coworking brand, Common Desk, has expanded into North Carolina.
• The new space is located at the historic Gaylord Building in Downtown Wilmington.
• Common Desk – Wilmington brings three floors of flexible coworking, office, and event space to the downtown area.

Common Desk, a Texas-based coworking and hospitality company, has opened the doors to its first location outside of Texas, located in the heart of Downtown Wilmington, North Carolina.

In hand with local landlord East West Partners, Common Desk has renovated the historic Gaylord Building at 226 N Front Street, bringing three floors of flexible coworking, office, and event space to the downtown area.

“It’s maybe my favorite project I’ve ever been involved with,” said McKay Siegel, Project Manager for the Wilmington Division of East West Partners. “Our design and construction teams brought the Gaylord Building back into the full glory of its hey-day, and delivered it into the twenty-first century as a coworking space that would compete in any primary market.

“From a leasing standpoint, the Common Desk team is and has been incredible at recruiting companies and convincing them that they need to be downtown. Lucien Ellison and I (as East West Partners – Wilmington) were the first members, but every member since is a small business that’s committing to downtown, and that’s fun to be a part of.”

As one of the first coworking brands to open in the state of Texas, Common Desk has been providing its professional community of members with experiential coworking since 2012. Specializing in an all-inclusive model of thoughtful and functional amenities, Common Desk members enjoy everything from cocktails to coffee to conference room bookings, at no extra cost outside of their monthly membership prices.

Common Desk operates an open network of uniquely-designed coworking spaces, allowing its Wilmington members to freely utilize all locations in Dallas, Austin, Houston, and coming-soon Raleigh.

Its Wilmington space spans nearly 23,000 square feet, featuring 9 conference rooms, 34 private offices, 4 team suites, and expansive areas for shared desk coworking. Common Desk’s very own craft coffee brand, Fiction Coffee, services all three floors with bottomless drip coffee, as well as specialty drink offerings from the espresso bar within the space. The first floor is designed to double as an event space for hosting local networking events, happy hours, and meetups after hours.

Throughout Common Desk – Wilmington, one can find pieces of the Gaylord Building’s history woven into the reimagined design–a banner from the building’s opening day in 1900, salvaged wood slats from the original department store’s signage, reclaimed wood from old flooring that has been repurposed for shelves and stair treads, and a gallery wall featuring found building artifacts such as books, receipts, and bottles. Skylights on the third floor and the building’s trademark bay window offer members of Common Desk – Wilmington plenty of sunlight, as well as an impressive view of the Riverfront and downtown. Other amenities include a shared kitchen, wellness room, private chat booths, and vast flexible space for events and meetings. Common Desk is following recommended COVID-19 safety measures and health policies to keep guests, members, and staff safe.

“We’re big believers in the lifestyle towns that are centered around community building, art and culture, and well-being,” said Common Desk founder and CEO Nick Clark. “Wilmington perfectly encompasses all of these things and already has momentum with companies big and small relocating to the city.

“With a lack of existing flexible, turn-key office spaces, Common Desk is excited to bring our workday solutions into the market and play a role in providing space for Wilmington’s professional community.”