Beachworx is Destin’s premiere coworking community, supporting entrepreneurs, small businesses and remote workers. The operator announced its first franchise location in Fort Walton Beach is now open. “Our franchise is a unique solution for landlords with vacant office or retail space,” said CEO, Steven Franco, citing the franchise’s flexible terms as a means to quickly realize profitability.
Franchisees Brandon and Crystal Hillenburg agreed. In 2021 they purchased Harbour Village, a 50,000 square foot light industrial property on Lewis Street, off Beal Parkway North. When a 4,000 square foot suite became vacant, the Hillenburg’s jumped at the opportunity to convert it to a Beachworx.
Inspired by the Destin flagship’s success creating an ecosystem of business support and opportunity, the Hillenburgs believed franchising a Beachworx was the best way to expand their commercial real estate business while staying true to their values. “We’re big into helping other people achieve their dreams,” Brandon told FWB Life. “We love that we have a music school and a karate school [in Harbour Village]. We’re always looking for a win/win/win. We tell tenants ‘we love to have you here, but we hope you outgrow us.’”
Vice President of Operations Melissa Fertitta says members grow into and out of Beachworx– and that’s all part of the appeal. “Because we don’t operate like traditional commercial leasing – there are no long-term commitments and we only require 30 days’ notice to change or terminate a membership, we see the same businesses come in and out at different times in their business life cycle. That affordability and flexibility is exactly the kind of support small businesses need to be agile and respond to changes in the market and in their own business,” Fertitta said.
Beachworx’s programming offers unique support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. “We have great partnerships with resources like the SBDC and the Veteran Business Opportunity Center,” said Melissa. “They lead a workshop at least once per quarter, but we have great resources in our member community, too. Our members are subject matter experts in various areas that support small businesses. We like to feature them in monthly lunch and learns–such as the Tech Talk Tuesday series that launched this month.”
“We provide space-as-a-solution in a more robust offering than other operators,” points out Steven. Users can access Beachworx on a month-to-month basis and, in some cases, without any membership at all. For example, conference rooms can be rented by the hour or day, and coworking passes are purchased by the day or in discounted packs that do not expire.
Beachworx Fort Walton Beach offers an eight-seat conference room that can be rented for $50 per hour. There are 10 private offices, some furnished, and each large enough to accommodate two people. The open coworking area is the heart of the house, featuring 11 hot desks that can be dedicated to a member or accessed on a first-come, first-served basis, by the day or with monthly memberships.
Mid-century modern soft seating creates inviting spaces for collaboration or relaxation. Two closets have been converted to phone booths, allowing coworkers a private space to take calls. A kitchenette with a full-size refrigerator and microwave are available for all users.
The Hillenburgs designed the coworking area with furnishings that can be quickly rearranged, making this area prime for event rentals of up to 50 people.
If you’re curious about either Beachworx community, plan to work with a discounted coworking day pass for Single Tasking Day, February 22. Purchase $15 passes on eventbrite.com: https://bit.ly/single_task.
