Flexible ‘co-warehousing’ concept is taking industrial space west of Buckhead, Midtown

A concept that proves coworking isn’t all ping-pong lunches and Free Beer Fridays is bound for a warehouse district in a growing pocket of Atlanta between Buckhead and Interstate 285.

Officials with the Saltbox company announced this week they plan to open a 27,000-square-foot space that combines coworking with “co-warehousing” in an industrial facility off Collier Road—an area that company heads, like developers, have coined the “Upper Westside.”

Saltbox recently secured $3.2 million in venture funding, and the 1345 Seaboard Industrial Boulevard facility is the first of many planned. It’s expected to open in November.

Nearby landmarks include Crest Lawn Memorial Park, Nuevo Laredo Cantina, and Second Self Beer Company.

Like other coworking options, the idea is to offer spaces customized for specific tenants under the same roof with month-to-month memberships, where people in related field might rub elbows and share ideas. Only with access to things like loading docks, warehouse equipment, a photography stage, and high-level security.

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The target demographic is what Saltbox calls the concrete class, or “a diverse set of entrepreneurs that includes importers and exporters, distributors, makers, and e-commerce operators” that’s been “vastly overlooked and under-serviced when it comes to the physical space,” per a company announcement.

Monthly rates range from about $220 for a community membership to $2,500 for a large warehouse space.

“Because these entrepreneurs don’t need tens of thousands of square feet, they find themselves facing a constant and frustrating tradeoff,” said Tyler Scriven, Saltbox cofounder and CEO, in a prepared statement. “Current options are either too expensive, too big, or too far away from city centers.

“And with the average warehouse space being 34 years old,” added Scriven, “they’re inevitably forced to give up the modern conveniences that businesses need to thrive.”

Residential and retail investment in the area has gained steam the past couple of years. Numerous projects include another venture with a warehouse-redo component, Westside Village, on Marietta Boulevard.

Elsewhere, Atlanta-based builder PulteGroup is building a community of 46 townhomes, Altus at the Quarter, that’s being marketed as the city’s first “smart neighborhood,” located around the corner from the Seaboard Avenue warehouses.