Working remotely, but not from home — that’s the concept behind a new business in Damariscotta.

One day recently a man was walking down Main Street. He noticed a new place with an interesting logo on the window: BUZZ MAINE.

The man went in and ordered a coffee, and asked the woman at the counter, owner Jennifer Van Horne, what, exactly, BUZZ was. Van Horne explained that it was, in essence, a modern take on the workplace. He told Van Horne he was a professor, on sabbatical, who was having trouble writing at home. There were too many distractions.

Van Horne gave him a tour, and explained that BUZZ MAINE was a work space that required a monthly membership. He thanked her and started to leave. “Then (he) turned around and told me that he would be back within the hour with his files and laptop,” Van Horne said. “Less than an hour later he was a monthly member.”

Working remotely — from home — can be nice. You don't have to jump up at the sound of the alarm, shower, pull on your clothes, apply makeup, feed the pets and throw in a load of laundry before flying out the door.

But, as the professor said, working at home has its drawbacks. It can be hard to focus on your work when your dog is staring at you and there's a pile of laundry waiting to be tended to. During the winter you’ll also be spending more to keep the house warm while you’re there.

That's where BUZZ MAINE comes in.

An LLC, the work space/coffee shop is owned and run by three women. Jennifer Van Horne owns the largest portion, and her daughters, Torie DeLisle and Erin Van Horne, each own a percentage of the business.

BUZZ Maine is a retail gourmet coffee shop with a clean, modern, light-filled open working space and a private closed-off conference room at the back of the space. Everything in the coffee shop is 100 percent organic, including the wide array of hot coffee drinks, soups and the decadent pastries. Even the watering hole drinks are organic. Every day from around 4:30 or 5 to 6:30 there’s a cocktail hour, hosted by DeLisle and her husband, August.

In fact, BUZZ MAINE is one of only a handful of places in Maine that carry only 100 percent organic, well, everything, including containers.

For $45 a month ($40 if paid annually), or $35 for just a week, you’ll gain access to the work space seven days a week during business hours, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. You will have the use of  a 100MB internet connection, and access to special “BUZZ talks,” informational talks presented periodically in the conference room.

You also have the option to use the space for $10 a day, and/or pay $10 monthly to have access to BUZZ talks and programs.

One day recently two women were working companionably on their laptops, sitting at one of the smooth new handmade wood counters that run along two sides of the room.

Kate Bathras lives in Alna and works for a company called UpStream. Most of her work can be done remotely. She joined BUZZ MAINE because she likes the idea of working in intown Damariscotta. “I think this place is great. It's like coming to Jen's house and getting fed her awesome food,” she said. “And working in town is convenient for managing daily tasks, like running to the post office, the grocery store, or the library. And it takes me 10 minutes to get here.”

And Bathras said being a member has been good for networking. “Through being here I met a woman who now is working for our company, just because we were working in the same space and started talking.”

Liz McGregor, from Newcastle, got a monthly membership. “I come here to work because if I'm at home I want to do all of my home projects, but here there are zero distractions. It compartmentalizes my life. When I go home I can wrap up my day and just focus on being home.”

Members have access to the space during all hours of operation, from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and Sundays from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Non-members are welcome to purchase coffee and tea drinks, and pastries to go, anytime, and can use the tables and work spaces from 7 to 8 a.m. and 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. “We want to preserve the integrity of the working space during the day,” Van Horne said.

Weekends are open to all.

BUZZ MAINE offers a setting for people who might be isolated due to working at home, alone, and missing the camaraderie that being in a work environment provides. “I think we're fulfilling that need,” Van Horne said.

It’s a new concept. Think of it as a working office where someone off the street can't simply walk in and plug into wifi. It might take a little getting used to in the small Maine town of Damariscotta, but it is an idea whose time has come.

BUZZ MAINE is located at 133 Main Street. Visit its website or call 207-226-7517 to learn more.