Highlights in the shop include an old school desk, a retro telephone table and a vintage wash basin
Shop owner Pete Bennett restores a vintage telephone table(Image: Liverpool ECHO )
A pop-up shop in the city centre is helping to bring Liverpool’s well-loved treasures back to life. Renew moved in October into a temporary unit in the Metquarter, where it now sells a upcycled and restored furniture, ranging from modern and mid-century pieces to antiques.
After transforming the unit into a fully functioning furniture shop in just one week, Renew extended its stay following a successful initial run over the Christmas period.
Items on sale include wardrobes, chests of drawers, picture frames and chairs, all restored in the unique style of owner and jack-of-all-trades Peter Bennett, 38, who offers refurbishments, painting and upholstery services.
A pink dresser restored by Peter(Image: Liverpool ECHO )
Other highlights in the shop include a school desk estimated to be around 100 years old, a retro telephone table and a vintage wash basin with furniture sourced from all over, including from commissions, Facebook Marketplace and house clearances.
Peter said: “We rescue old furniture and things we don’t want going to waste. We save things from landfill and transform them into usable pieces.”
Much of the restoration work takes place in front of customer’s eyes, with Peter having set up a painting station at the front of the shop.
Messier jobs are taken back to Peter’s Wavertree workshop.
A wooden desk estimated to be around 100 years old (Image: Liverpool ECHO)
Peter also works on unique designs including art deco-style wardrobes, bright pink dressers, gothic-style pieces, as well as simple woodwork restorations.
The dad-of-six from Childwall said: “We work with everything – bookcases, cupboards, ottomans. We’ll do exactly what the customer wants. If someone has a piece that’s the right size for their home, they don’t always want to buy something new, they just want it to look new.”
Peter’s favourite piece is a mid-century style chest of drawers with curved drawers, a unique item that would otherwise be lost.
“I’ve always been making things,” said Peter, who studied product design and digital modelling at Liverpool John Moores University. “I used to work with built-in furniture and it developed from there. I loved painting things and saving things. It’s very fun. I’m always doing something different.”
Peter Bennett outside Renew in the Metquarter (Image: Liverpool ECHO)
Renew also sells furniture online, runs workshops teaching people how to restore and paint furniture and sells paints in store.
The pop up shop is open from 10am to 5pm, Wednesday to Saturday and 11am to 5pm on Sundays.