Departing the Station

Hot sweaty summer days,

spent in a warehouse,

with no A/C,

in South Florida.

Dedication + a dream to build something great was on the forefront of our minds as I joined hands with the founder of The Station in West Palm Beach. Six months prior, all she had was an empty warehouse and an idea to gather local brands in one space. That January, in a whirlwind of a few weeks, the space was filled, local vendors were selling goods and West Palm Beachers came flocking.

As the Winter season was coming to a close in Florida, we were asked to come alongside to reinvision the giant open warehouse space. Over the summer months, the station was to be closed for improvements. Air conditioning was being installed and we needed to find a more uniform structure to the space, creating more consistency between vendors. There was also a need to carve out social areas for people to stand and chat, a front register and a central stage for events.

Project Details

Client The Station
Task Redesign Layout + Build

When Summer 2017
Where West Palm Beach, FL

To create something from nothing, and on a shoestring budget is full of challenge – but this project has a ton of heart with great people behind it. My own company is rooted in Lake Worth, just one city South of West Palm. We’re always excited to pour into our local community and contribute to the development of Palm Beach county. There was serious work ahead in getting this project back together before the season II’s reopening late summer, but we were in!

I put together a layout, we specked out materials and started construction in the 102° steam box warehouse. There were long, dusty, sweaty days. Then it all came together. The stage was set, plants set out in every corner, local shops set out their goods and the events schedule made.

Then came season III – and with it, all new changes and new visionaries. What went up must come down and the sweat equity I left in that warehouse is now only a shadow. The new layout was unveiled exactly one year from it’s original opening day, January 2018 with minimal remenents of the design I created.

But these are the things that keep us honest. Shedding old skin allows room for the fresh new skin underneath. That growth sometimes hits with a punch, and it may take a few weeks to gain perspective. Now the perspective I’ve gained through this process is this:

Good things grow into better things
Better things blossom into great things
Great things start changing and defining a city.

Being a part of that process offers me success. Having the project move forward, ready for new life carries with it the power of validation.

Where The Station is going next has the underlying influence of the space I helped make – and that’s a humbling thing to be a legacy for.