Portland's Beam & Anchor

Jocelyn writes, "We’ve spent the last six months transforming a 7,000-square-foot dilapidated warehouse into a functional workspace for makers (top floor) and an inspiring retail space to sell beautiful things out of (bottom floor)." The workshop houses room for eight designers, from furniture makers (she says, "We've got a pretty nasty wood shop") to a leather artisan, an upholsterer, and soap makers. One common denominator is the hand-crafted element, which Jocelyn describes as "not crafty; good design is critical."

What the Rahms and their partner Currie Person are trying to do with the retail space is support a "community of like-minded creatives." This is Portland, after all, where collaborative is the name of game; the office-based co-working movement, though started in San Francisco, quickly picked up speed in the Pacific Northwest and is now common in the entrpreneurial ecosystem of Oregon's culture capital.

Check out Beam & Anchor's website for more on the fledgling workshop and event space.