Perhaps the most innovative meeting space to hit Michigan in a while is Warehouse 6, overseen by a pair of self-described corporate refugees from the manufacturing industry.
The other side of that Holland business is Cento Anni, a custom shop repurposing wood into everything from cutting boards and furniture to office uses. In fact, the building they’re in is repurposed from a manufacturing building that was vacant for 15 years.
They kept the distinctive post-industrial feel. After realizing they could use their showroom and design space for outside meetings and events while showcasing their products at the same time, they combined the two ideas three years ago for an entirely new event space concept holding up to 165 guests, says Ben Patchin, venue manager.
“A lot of what we try to do is to make old things new,” Patchin says. “One beautiful feature is a wall made of old wood bleacher risers. When no one knew what to do with the wood,” he says, “we stepped in and said ‘we’ll take those,’ and it makes for a real cool accent wall.
“We want people to have the freedom to create their own event. You have the option to choose your own catering vendor. We work with Grand Rapids’ The Catering Company and Barfly Events while still allowing a pretty wide net for you to throw for cost points, food styles and more,” Patchin adds.
