Entrepreneurs launch cowork space, confident in their counterintuitive timing

Thomas O’Riordan and Shayne Faerber hadn’t originally planned on opening a membership-based coworking space. The two entrepreneurs had been working together on a software startup at the Naples Accelerator. But when changes there forced them to look for new work space, they had trouble finding something they liked.

When the pair saw two separate but adjoining spaces at Wilson Professional Center in Naples, they realized the potential that could arise from combining them, and the idea for the Collier Capital Club was born. They knocked down walls, painted and laid flooring, putting $100,000-plus into creating a bright and modern spot where other local entrepreneurs can also build their businesses.

“The main thing we’re trying to do is to help people grow their companies and keep their companies in Naples,” says Faerber, 40, who’s been involved in a number of startups including Mall Maps. “We really want to grow the economy that way.”

Collier Capital Club offers a variety of membership options. A virtual membership from $110 a month gives businesses a professional address for their company, mail services and a free day pass for coworking space. Memberships for coworking space start at $300 a month, with options ranging from chairs and “hot” desks to 22 dedicated desk spaces within the open area. The club also has seven private offices that start at $1,195 a month. “We have a lot of interest coming through,” Faerber says. “And we’re priced very competitively compared to other spaces around.”

‘We’re going to be very enticing for people who are in this market who need coworking space or can’t stand working from home.' Thomas O’Riordan, Collier Capital Club

Collier Capital Club has also begun offering corporate memberships (prices vary). This option is for companies that have maybe decided to get rid of pre-pandemic office space but seek to give employees a physical place to work from time to time. Day passes are also available starting at $35.

Membership amenities include two private conference rooms, complimentary coffee and water, high-speed Wi-Fi and access to a professional high-speed printer. Members can also use the Wilson Professional Center’s Canteen Room and outdoor courtyard.

Good negotiating skills helped Faerber and O’Riordan secure the space at Wilson Professional Center for a reasonable price, at a time when a lot of businesses are reevaluating office space needs after almost a year of dealing with the changes brought about by the pandemic. The founders think all those months of remote working will actually work in their favor. “We’re going to be very enticing for people who are in this market who need coworking space or can’t stand working from home,” says O’Riordan, 33, who previously founded athletic apparel company Enso and customer intelligence company CXCI. “We’d love to take over the whole building some day.”

Collier Capital Club has already expanded into 900 square feet of additional space at Wilson Professional Center, which has been turned into a lounge and event area. (The club was recently selected as a venue for 1 Million Cups Naples, a national startup entrepreneur-focused event.) And it’s starting an incubator program after getting calls from investors looking to invest in startup businesses. “Usually, it’s the other way around — everyone is chasing money and the opportunity to pitch,” Faerber says. At Collier Capital Club, that money is just waiting for good businesses in which to invest, he says. The program even has a major investor with viable ideas, business plans and market research in place who is just looking for someone to execute them.

Memberships are offered on a month-to-month basis except for the private offices, which require an initial three-month commitment before transitioning to monthly. There are no onboarding costs unlike at other coworking spaces. “It’s really cost-effective for this new kind of hybrid work life,” Faerber says.

Once the word gets out more, and membership spaces start to fill, the founders think a need to expand will be a bigger issue than turnover. And they anticipate a vibrant space where members are not only working individually but also together.

“It will be a place where they can not only use each other’s services but also create new companies with each other, like what Thomas and I did,” Faerber says. “That’s the overall energy we want to have, where people can spark these ideas and new companies and grow from there.”