Member Article

New look for food store thanks to films

An environmentally-friendly food store has been given a new look thanks to County Durham architectural film distributor.

In January, Architextural, part of Barnard Castle-based William Smith Group 1832, launched a campaign to offer one lucky business a free £5,000 revamp – and Darlington shop Earth Warriors was chosen as the winner.

Following the launch, Architextural, a stockist and trade supplier of all architectural and building-related films, received 220 entries to the #YourFinishingTouch prize draw.

Jack Carr, marketing executive at Architextural, said: “The response was far greater that we’d expected, which was really positive.

“We picked Earth Warriors as they have an environmentally friendly angle to their business which sits perfectly with us and the upcycling values we live by; we believe in wrapping existing surfaces rather than sending them to landfill.”

The refurbishment consisted of upcycling surfaces such as counter tops and refrigerated cabinets to give the store a fresh new look.

Lol Brass, creative development manager at Architextural, said: “The project took two days, and we worked with 3M Endorsed installer Harry Guy, from Redcar-based Sign Art, on the actual installation.

“We used seven 3M DI-NOC patterns in the project to create a range of finishes, from suede to wood, to provide the store with a cohesive design scheme, using clearly defined zones and a unified colour palette throughout.

“The advantage of using architectural films for projects like this is the speed; all these finishes could be installed during shop opening hours without any disruption to business.

“Films are also much easier to keep clean, which is obviously very important now more than ever.”

Earth Warriors is a sustainable food and lifestyle store in Darlington’s Skinnergate, which was set up by Anthony and Laura Phoenix to offer a more environmentally-friendly way of shopping.

Laura said: “It feels very surreal to have won; you never expect to win such an amazing prize.

“It was great to work with the Architextural designers to come to a mutual decision on where we should go with the designs, and we were pleased that our thoughts and feelings were considered carefully and we were very much listened to.

“Our takings have dropped dramatically with the lack of footfall since the start of the pandemic, and we’ve been trying to upgrade the look of the shop to try to attract new customers - having this makeover has certainly helped with that!

“The architectural films give a high quality and expensive look whilst also being practical and easy to clean, and the refurbishment makes the space feel much warmer and more inviting than before.”

Jack added: “It feels brilliant to help a small business at a time like this. The sheer delight of the winner when they informed epitomises where we are with life at the moment.

“It’s not every day you can bring joy to someone, so it’s a good feeling when you can.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Harvey & Hugo .