The Loft at Steamer Co. 5 recently opened at 200 W. Marshall St.. The venue has rented the second floor of the historic fire station. (Jack Jacobs photo)
Undeterred by the impact of the pandemic on the events industry, a North Carolina venue owner is in full swing on an expansion into Richmond.
Nicole Clayton recently opened the doors at The Loft at Steamer Co. 5, a venue in the historic fire station at 200 W. Marshall St. The 3,000-square-foot space, which opened in mid-February, is the upstairs neighbor of Gallery5, an art gallery who has been in the building since 2005.
Like others in the events business, Clayton has taken some hits from the pandemic. She was forced to close one of her North Carolina venues. But she continues to run The Cloth Mill on the Eno River in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and is now back in two locations with the opening of her space in Jackson Ward.
Nicole Clayton owns The Loft at Steamer Co. 5. (Courtesy Loft)
Existing restrictions on personal social gatherings remain a hurdle, but Clayton said The Loft’s size gives her an advantage. Government regulations to contain the spread of COVID-19 were recently updated to allow for social gatherings (i.e. parties and celebrations) of up to 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors.
“I’m not worried because I saw the other side,” Clayton said. “I’m just glad I’m here, and because my space is smaller, I do a maximum of 60 people (anyway).”
Clayton is taking over a newly renovated space at Steamer Co. 5 that was purchased in 2018 from local developer and landlord Bruce Vanderbilt, who completely modernized the second floor.
Clayton and Vanderbilt have known each other for a number of years, and Clayton ended up in space after starting talks in December about Vanderbilt’s interest in setting up an event organizer. Clayton had also investigated the opening of a venue in Richmond a few years ago, but pushed those plans into the background.
“When I saw it, I just fell in love,” she said. “That’s my style. I love historic properties and I celebrate the story behind the buildings and who worked in them.”
The building was built in the 1880s and served as a fire station. The building was also home to a police and fire museum. Clayton’s 10,000 square foot North Carolina venue is a historic textile mill.
The venue can accommodate up to 60 people at tables and 75 people for a standing cocktail reception. (Courtesy Loft)
The new venue offers space for a maximum of 60 people at tables or up to 75 people at a standing reception. Clayton sees their venue as a space for a wide variety of gatherings, from weddings and birthday parties to conferences and business trips. She said she had already booked some events.
Right now, Clayton and her North Carolina crew are running the operation, but the ultimate goal is to have a full local staff of one to three people to run the Richmond venue.
For others in the local events industry, the pandemic forced some difficult decisions and some creative pivots. Long-time event supplier Exhibits Inc. closed down and filed for bankruptcy last year, while event personnel company RMC Events was busy running COVID test and vaccination sites.