Creatives have a new playground in downtown Vallejo: The Exchange

VALLEJO — When Stephanie Brown, owner of the now closed retail store The Joint, realized that she needed to let go of the business she had built and cherished for seven years, her first thought was to close the doors for good.

But The Joint had not been just a store that sold an assortment of interesting house goods, leather products, vintage clothes and gifts, it had also become a community space. Customers congregated for craft workshops or simply sat at the table Brown kept in a corner to chat.

“Every time somebody came in and I talked about the store closing, people were really sad and upset about losing the space,” Brown said. “Eventually someone sent me an email saying that it had never been about the stuff. It had always been about the space and the community that we had built here. That created a shift in me and motivated me to figure out how to keep it open.”

Brown and Jennifer Laursen, who taught leather workshops at The Joint, decided to become partners and transform the retail store on 619 Marin St. into a haven for creatives and a community hub. The workshops had already brought in more money than the retail for a while, so it was a logical transition. 

After selling the rest of the inventory, Brown redesigned the space and she and Laursen opened the doors of The Exchange on March 1.

The Exchange’s floor plan is flexible, allowing for multiple purposes. A suite of workstations line one wall with tools for various arts and crafts such as block printing, leather, fiber art, and digital crafting. A photography studio in the back room provides studio lighting, backdrops and props. 

On the left side, large work tables pushed together are used for group workshops. Each work table can be separated for individual work or folded and put away when The Exchange is rented for a dance, a yoga class or another event that needs floor room.

To the right, a lounge area with comfortable sofas invites relaxed socialization. There, Laursen and Brown hold social events on Friday evenings, like The Vinyl Den, where people bring and play their favorite records and share music stories.

Next to the front windows, small round tables offer room for people to sit and chat, or for computer work.

“The space kept evolving before we even opened, from not just teaching creative workshops, but being a place where people can come and meet and hang out,” Laursen said. 

During the day, Laursen and Brown offer The Exchange as a coworking space and for studio time. Clients can come to work on a computer or to produce their art and crafts using The Exchange’s tables, tools and equipment instead of buying their own.

“We have free Wi-Fi, and we offer coffee and tea, so you can come in here and have focused time to co-work,” Laursen said. 

“And for people who want to try a new craft and don't want to invest in all the tools and equipment they can come down here and try it out first,” Brown added.

Renting a coworking station costs $25 for half a day, $44 for a full day or $150 per month. The monthly fee allows you to use the space Wednesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. And if The Exchange is open on the weekend because Laursen and Brown are offering a workshop or social event, you can also come and work during that time.

Studio time, with its access to all tools and equipment, is a little more expensive: $45 for half a day and $65 for a full day. You can also get a monthly membership for $125, which includes a $95 credit for workshops, events or studio time. Membership also gives you access to two members-only events, a cocktail party and a wine club, as well as a guest pass.

“If people want to come in and work on something, they can book some private time with us to get them started and introduce them to the tools, and then they can just be off and running and work on whatever they want,” Laursen said.

Brown and Laursen also offer instructor-led workshops with different topics, skill levels and price ranges, mostly on weekends. Topics include making leather products such as clutches and wallets, watercolors, photo embroidery, block printing and more.

On weekday evenings they have craft clubs that meet monthly, such as “The Bessom Buddies,” a broom making club, “The Cut and Paste Society,” a collage club or “The Stitch and Bitch” where people can come with any craft they are working on to create in community while telling salty stories. These monthly clubs cost $25 and include light informal instruction if needed.

An interesting offering for people who want to flex their creative muscle but don’t know where to start or fear not having the talent is their Art Cafe. “You come in, you get a menu with six different crafts,” Brown explained. After you choose your craft, “You get a box delivered to your table that has all your supplies and materials and we help you get started. Then you take it from there.”

You can sign up for Art Cafe at any time The Exchange is open. The cost is $29. “If you want something in between an instructor-led workshop and a craft club, this is a really nice, bite-sized thing just to get your creative juices flowing,” Laursen said. Art Cafe is popular for couple dates and girlfriend outings.

Brown and Laurson also make it a point to offer some free events for the community, including a Farmer’s Market on the second Sunday of every month from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., when anybody can come to share and swap the excess produce from their yards. 

“The challenge that we have is that while we would love to offer more free things, the reality of it is that we do have to keep the lights on, so we're always walking this tightrope of figuring out how to make it available to everyone,” Brown said.

The Exchange has been well received and is growing steadily. Its offerings keep evolving as Laursen and Brown ask their customers what they want to see in the space. 

“It's been wonderful to see people make new friends and socialize even outside of The Exchange,” Laursen said. “It's too convenient to stream at home and shut ourselves away, but it feels really good, and it's super important to get out there and talk to people.”