Dubbo-based The Exchange is set to expand to a second regional location as it continues to support small business owners who are starting and scaling.
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The Jillian Kilby-led organisation that calls the landmark clock tower home has announced it will be opening a co-working space at Narrabri.
The Exchange reports it has bought the original Faulkners Cordial Factory and Ice Works, a large heritage precinct with two 106-year-old red brick buildings located in the main street of the town in north-western NSW.
Opening in January, a significant renovation has started and The Exchange is hiring local talent.
It is in the process of recruiting for its advertising sales and business development manager, program manager and customer experience positions.
Local trades have also been engaged to restore one of the empty heritage buildings, mirroring CEO and engineer Ms Kilby's renovation of the clock tower landmark at Dubbo.
It will be incredible to see this disused red brick icon brought back to life.
- The Exchange CEO Jillian Kilby
"It will be incredible to see this disused red brick icon brought back to life," she said.
"The second site will become our north-west hub for business owners to work and gather, fostering regional innovation and community, bringing together a diverse network of people who will have the space to connect, the room to grow, the opportunity to learn, and the support they need to succeed."
The Exchange reports hundreds of business owners use the Dubbo co-working space and membership resources each year, with thousands of people following the organisation on social media.
Ms Kilby was the 2018 NSW/ACT Agrifutures Rural Woman of the Year, using the bursary to study the needs of small business owners, focusing on those owned by women in regional Australia.
She founded The Exchange in 2018, first using the facilities at the Dubbo campus of Charles Sturt University.
She led its restoration with the vision to transform it into a community and co-working space for starting or scaling businesses, hosting its first function in December 2019.
Similarly to Dubbo, The Exchange Narrabri will provide co-working, private offices, meeting rooms and event space to hire by the hour, day, or year, as well as an extensive program of educational, capacity building and networking events and opportunities via The Exchange Business Activator (TEBA) program throughout 2022.