As you know I have been a little cagey about committing to dates about various events like product releases, meetings, classes, etc. As of this afternoon I can explain why.
A rough calculation of the space usage of our 2000 sq. ft. house indicated that we are now using 937 sq. ft. for Bottlehead and the Tape Project. We've managed to hang in pretty well through the economic downturn (thanks for the support!) and now with the economy picking back up we are realizing there is just no "give" left in this 70 year old house to further grow the businesses. So we have been looking for a new space off and on for the past nine months. After looking at a string of places that looked like "fixer uppers" we happened upon a very hip business park on Bainbridge Island with a really great 1542 sq. ft. space in a brand new building. As of this afternoon the signatures on the lease are dry so I can announce that Bottlehead and also the Tape Project's packing, shipping and customer service aspects will be living in this new space sometime near August 1.
Our lab and packing operations will be housed in one suite that we intend to lay out in an open plan so that we can reconfigure the space as a classroom that can hold 10 or 15 students at a time. Across the hall we will have offices, a lobby area with a little bar area, and - wait for it - A 4000 CU. FT. DEDICATED LISTENING ROOM! Yee haw! The isolated room will be 16.5 x 25 x 10, with a hole in the ceiling that opens up to a sloped ceiling of 18'. I'm hoping to use a lot of the ideas that Paul and Michael used when they built their mastering rooms, which I still think are about the best rooms I've heard.
If I haven't made it clear here, the idea is to create a space that is very bottlehead friendly. The office is just a few minute's drive from the Bainbridge Island ferry terminal and we will plan to do a lot of events here to fully utilize the space. I foresee short one day classes as well as the more intense kind of class we have done in the past, monthly meetings, new product release events, and a place for folks to come and audition Bottlehead products and Tape Project tapes.
Oh, did I mention that there is a vodka, gin and whisky distillery with a tasting room right downstairs?
