What It’s Like to Work at Wheelhouse Richmond

When it’s nice out, I love to work outside in the afternoons. I’ll take calls in the courtyard in front of the office, or respond to emails from the benches outside.

Laura Rowe, Director, Digital Advertising

You might have heard that Wheelhouse DMG, headquartered in Seattle, WA, has a second office (at a coworking space) in Richmond, VA! We asked the VA team to share their thoughts on what it’s like to work in our East Coast office. Here’s what they had to share:

So, what’s it like to work at Wheelhouse DMG Richmond?

Our Wheelhousers in Richmond, VA work out of Gather Short Pump, a coworking space near Richmond, VA. There are currently four folks sharing this space, with plans to expand later this year!

Gather Coworking Space is really cool! The environment is so modern, and clean. The Gather coworking space has everything that an office needs – private office space, communal work space, outside seating, printers, conference rooms, huge kitchen, modern design, private “telephone booths”, and more.

Michelle Barnes, Digital Advertising Analyst

We love connecting with the neighbors.

The co-working space is often abuzz with activity from dozens of other businesses and entrepreneurs on site which is great for learning about new ideas and wide-ranging opinions.

Oscar Chow, Senior Paid Search Analyst

With just a few Wheelhousers in the office, our Richmond group is a tight-knit team.

Being part of such a small team has given us the opportunity to really get to know everyone’s strengths and weaknesses, which I think allows us to be even more collaborative than some bigger teams.

Liz Spicuzza, Senior Digital Advertising Analyst

We’re hustling and bustling most of the day.

Since most of our clients are on the West Coast (along with the rest of the WH team), we have a lot of quiet time in the mornings to go heads down and knock out a lot of work — after grabbing a free Black Hand coffee (a Richmond favorite). Afternoons are usually a bit busier, and it’s rare you’ll find all four of us at our desks at once. But when we do bump into each other, we like to share how our day is going and bounce questions and ideas off one another.

Liz Spicuzza, Senior Digital Advertising Analyst

Cookie Hour & Other Favorite Gather Perks

With several fantastic restaurants and cafes nearby, it’s easy to pick up a fresh-brewed coffee or stop for a healthy lunch out. For busy, meeting-filled days, our team loves the Wheelhouse-stocked community fridge or the occasional team lunch delivery. And apparently, the secret’s out…

Perhaps one of our distinguishing features, Wheelhouse DMG Richmond is really proud of receiving Grandma’s House Award for Best Snacks – a recognition from members of our co-working location. We knew we couldn’t hide a fully stocked mini-fridge and snack larder, so we share Wheelhouse snacks with all our co-working colleagues.

Oscar Chow, Senior Paid Search Analyst

4 out of 4 Analysts agree that Cookie Hour is a top perk at the Gather coworking space.

My favorite Gather perk is cookie hour! Every Wednesday at 3pm, a local bakery, Sugar & Twine, brings freshly baked cookies to the office. It’s the perfect mid-week pick-me-up.

Laura Rowe, Director, Digital Advertising

Other highly-appreciated perks include community events like Happy Hour and Salad Club, discounts to local businesses (including to Ray’s Italian Ice nearby — yum!), freshly made pancakes in the commons, and free Nitro Cold Brew on tap at the coffee station in the communal kitchen.

Relatedly, how’s Richmond, VA?

Richmond is a really cool city. It’s still small, not congested with traffic, and doesn’t have exorbitant housing prices. But, it’s growing, and has an awesome brewery scene. We also have the best of both worlds, we’re smack dab in between the beach (1 hour east) and the mountains (1 hour west).

Laura Rowe, Director, Digital Advertising

Richmond, VA might be known for its slower pace than larger cities but there’s an abundance of character, charm and things to do here. One will quickly notice artsy, quirky vibes due to the presence of a large liberal arts college that calls the city home. Museums, parks and local venues to eat and shop suit nearly every taste. Juxtaposed to that scene is gorgeous architecture from historic antebellum and revitalized areas in the city. For people who love the outdoors and have a calling for adventure, the James River runs through the middle of the city with ideal conditions for whitewater rafting, kayaking, sunning and fishing. Along the banks there are rugged trails for mountain biking and running.

One of my favorite things to do is to take a walk or jog across the James on either of the two footbridges available across to Brown’s Island, which opens up to more trails and a spectacular view of the cityscape. Richmond has much to offer and it’s amazing to be part of its vibrance working and living here.

Oscar Chow, Senior Paid Search Analyst

How does Wheelhouse help you stay connected to the Seattle team and company culture?

Wheelhouse strives to promote and support a strong company culture with all of our remote employees. Our teams are well-versed in Slack messaging (with dozens of Custom Slack Emojis we might just share in another blog post sometime) and Zoom conference calls — both of which help us get meaningful face time with our peers.

Additionally, Wheelhouse focuses on inclusive Event Planning & Event “Matching” — from Community Meetings to Experiential Events to Generosity Week Volunteering — to promote closeness between offices.

The Seattle team goes the extra mile to help maintain bonds across the country and exercise our company’s values. Whether it’s an all-hands Community Meeting or a social event like a wine tasting, video conferencing is setup so that we share linked experiences. The Richmond office has become an extension of the Seattle office both operationally and culturally.

Oscar Chow, Senior Paid Search Analyst

If they’re popping champagne, we’re popping champagne!

Laura Rowe, Director, Digital Advertising

Wheelhouse DMG provides a ton of benefits to their RVA employees [that are consistent with the Seattle office]. The benefits are well thought out and truly do make the workplace better and the employees happier – and happy employees lead to better work!

I keep asking my teammates, “So, what’s the catch? This place is amazing!”, and their responses continue to be “There really is no catch! Just be a good teammate, complete your work, and help out where you’re needed!”.

Michelle Barnes, Digital Advertising Analyst