Who needs sleep? Creative interior design entrepreneur finds another purpose for warehouse during Ian

Clive Daniel Home co-founder Daniel Lubner stayed overnight in the company's Fort Myers warehouse — one of three the company owns — during Hurricane Ian. 

As the storm approached Sept. 28, Lubner, his wife, two of his children and their dog retreated to the Clive Daniel Home warehouse, where they stayed with six other families until the storm passed. After spending time together during the natural disaster with both friends and strangers, Lubner says “those strangers are lifelong friends now."

The group included three generations tied to a CDH warehouse manager, a friend of Lubner who brought her mom and another friend who brought her family, parents and a few neighbors. Also among the mix were three dogs. The Lubners invited everyone they could to join them at the warehouse, as it provided plenty of space and, of course, lots of furniture options, including mattresses taken down to be slept on in the accounting offices. Though there wasn't a lot of peaceful sleeping that night, Lubner says.