The word “space” has a lot of meanings. It’s the name of one of the hippest ages of design of the ‘60s, a synonym for an area we live, gather and find solace in—and for Jesse Speicher, it's his business and livelihood.
Speicher is the owner of Space, a 2,200-square-foot warehouse in downtown Lancaster he calls the place for all things “vintage modern.”
“It’s midcentury influenced. It’s weird. It’s kooky. It’s campy,” he says. “It’s a weird juxtaposition of styles and colors … and somehow that crazy ends up working.”
The “crazy” Speicher is referring to is the assortment of furniture, barware, artwork, collectibles and anything else sublime he and his partner, Todd Baum, come across for their store.
“Every single little thing is picked up piece by piece. Everything you see was bought one piece at a time,” Speicher says. In fact, all of the items picked somehow fit under the umbrella of their vintage, modern, midcentury-inspired vision.
“It’s vintage stuff, but what would be considered a modern style, even from the ‘50s,” Speicher says. “It’s like if you were the cool family or cool housewife in the ‘50s, you bought this kind of stuff …like you made your house look all space-age and modern.”
It wouldn’t be unusual to find some kind of velvet olive-green sofa, funky multicolored ‘80s lamp or disco ball table centerpiece at Space. They even have a whole genre of tiki items, to Speicher's knowledge, probably the only store downtown to have such décor.
“I try to fill niches in Lancaster. … I try to think about things you can’t get anywhere else,” he says.
And they’re consistently adding new items to their store every single day.
“We get stuff anywhere. This includes scouring flea markets in the summertime. … We’re up three days a week at 5 a.m. going and shopping, then coming in and running the store that day,” he says. “We’re setting up at vintage shows. … We’re hitting thrift stores, consignment stores, maybe even a yard sale.”
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Speicher says they’re privileged to be in a location like Central Pennsylvania because of its close proximity to cities like Baltimore, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, where he and Baum can travel to find their eclectic treasures.
They also go on house calls, often when people are moving or, as Speicher says, “bought stuff from us five years ago, and they don’t want it anymore, so they sell it back.”
While Speicher is the owner of Space and describes himself as more of the “face” of the business, he credits Baum with doing the “grunt work,” including the heavy lifting and restoration from house calls.
“He takes our van out and restores all the furniture. It’s a ton of work,” he says. “Really, it’s a labor of love.”
Nonetheless, this labor of love is paying off. Speicher meets many local families and couples who actually have just about their whole house or apartment decorated in finds from Space, and he sees people of all ages stop in because the vintage-modern style is truly timeless.
“There’s a ton of vintage stuff, but there’s a lot of pieces that are new too because maybe you can’t find the one you want in vintage or maybe it’s too much money, but you can find the modern equivalent,” he says. “The shop is very much a reflection of our own personal style too. This is what we dig, and it happened to translate well.”
In fact, Speicher and Baum's style is so voguish that they were asked to design downtown Lancaster’s new ‘70s-themed bar, Shag.
Located in the upstairs of The Corner at Musser, Shag is a nostalgic dream. Bargoers step into a different decade through bold retro walls, hanging disco balls and a groovy tangerine aura.
Speicher says a retro lounge was actually a project he had always aspired to work on, as he believes there’s a need for one in the city. His inspiration for Shag, however, is far from the city.
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“Palm Springs. It’s the epicenter of midcentury design. I wanted to give Lancaster this little slice of the Palm Springs feel,” he says. “That whole town is about leisure and groovy spaces to hang out in.”
And the most impressive part of it all—they decorated the lounge in three days.
“We bought all the stuff and had one month to get it ready. But the month was like floors, walls and electrical. … then, three days, we rushed in there and threw that whole place together,” Speicher says. “I lost some sleep over it for sure. … but it all came together, and I am so proud of it and pleased with how it looks.”
No matter how cool—or even intimidating—Shag looks, Speicher says for Baum and him, it’s all about creating spaces that are inviting for everyone.
Being able to build relationships with the community over the 10-year span of Space’s existence, in fact, has been the very backbone of their success. And Speicher credits a lot of that success to many, many Friday night beers shared with customers-turned-friends in the store.
“I don’t care if you don’t buy anything. If you’re hanging out with us or you just walk in, it doesn’t matter. Our friend Dave comes almost every Friday and brings us new cocktails. He’s like our resident bartender … and he’s just someone who came in here and was like ‘This is rad.”’
After all, Speicher says you can’t have a business without having fun, and sometimes, sitting outside, playing music and having drinks and conversations with the community is just what makes Space the quirky—and one-of-a-kind—space it is.
“Space is so far from a pretentious business. There’s never going to be a chair you can’t sit on. There’s never going to be a $5,000 item. We are the blue-collar, Lancaster City, Lancaster County, store, and I love being that,” he says. “I’m winning if that’s what people think when they walk in.”
Space
24 W Walnut St, Lancaster, PA
717-413-3477
The Shag Bar
253 E Chestnut St, Lancaster, PA
717-696-0940
