The Paper Company

2017 Best Innovation

Clayton, NC

114 West Main Street began as a car dealership in the 1920's and in 1986, became the North Carolina Paper Company, a wholesale paper goods distributor. The Paper Company mostly used the building as storage, occupying less than 2,000 square feet. In 2016, Reid and Jaclyn Smith and Brad and Stephanie Carrol purchased the building with plans to convert it to office space, utilizing 10,000 square feet, with more room for expansion.

The interior of the building is designed as a modern co-working space. There is an open workspace, original beams, exposed brick walls and glass-enclosed conference rooms that look out onto Main Street. There is a rooftop deck that is a favorite hangout spot for the employees and their families to enjoy downtown events. The total cost of the project was $1.8 million. The Town of Clayton invested $10,000 in facade grant monies and the remaining funds were all private investment.

The building is now home to three companies, One27 Homes, Dakno Real Estate Marketing and Jaclyn Smith Properties, and a nonprofit called OneCompassion. The companies collectively employ 58 people. The project spurred hundreds of thousands of additional private investment on the surrounding block and enticed a local mortgage company to relocate to downtown, as well as a restaurant and a coffee and beer house to open downtown.