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DENVER -- If you think living in Colorado is expensive, try running a small business. Now, a new company is working to give people the option to rent shops when they close for the night.
Founder of VenUse, Jason Shepherd, says he first founded VenUse to rent out his own properties and spaces when he wasn't using them.
He says the possibilities are endless for both business owners and people looking rent either short- or long-term.
"We look at this as a huge opportunity for creatives, artists and entrepreneurs to really have access to a commercial asset class that really is tough to access because of the terms and long-term nature of leases."
Owner of Black Eye Coffee, Michelle Ackerman, says renting out her shop when she's not using it makes perfect sense.
"From the community aspect I wanted to share it but then from the financial aspect, my costs are just constantly going up, rent in this neighborhood is very expensive," saaid Ackerman. "Every night the shop is closed -- we're out of here at seven-o-clock -- it's totally vacant, I would love to see something happening every night, quite frankly."
Down the street, the owner of Image Brew Video Production, Benjamin Jones, is worried about renting out his space to strangers but says in order to be successful if you're renting out property, people have to put those feelings to the side.
"But in the world of commercial real estate, I think, you have to let go a little bit of that and really trust people or else you'll never be comfortable letting people use your space. If we can generate revenue passively where we're really just handing over the keys and they can just come in and use four walls within a space, I think that's a smart business move."
People can already use VenUSe to rent a variety of spaces. Their official Denver launch date will be November 7.