The Remade in Bangor project began as a conversation. That was it!
An idea between Jill ( the ReFound owner) and myself that came out of a brief encounter as I was picking the Harland and Wolf stools to up-cycle for the ReFound shop.
Jill had wanted Firsty Creative take over Refound in an event. As the conversation continued,I found myself in the position to connect different organisations together, each bringing their own element to strengthen the project.
I discovered the importance of good connections and the value of nurturing these into relationships. I had the right connections at the right time and found myself able to facilitate and influence the shape of project.
Using the ReFound ethos of creating “works of furniture”, we wanted to have a pop-up shop to sell up-cycled pieces created by local artists. Using discarded furniture, each artist would give their piece a distinctive appearance.
The final product was a pop-up shop that took place during European Week for Waste Reduction in November. It was a short leadtime to work in, but it created an opportunity to approach the local Recycling Awareness Officers for their support.
The team from North Down Council where able to supply the redundant pieces of furniture at no cost and provide us with a free space to hold a pop-up shop. They also supplied us with promotional opportunities and a small budget to cover the costs.
The pop-up shop was placed in a shopping centre in Bangor town centre. It was a risk placing it here as this location has a number of challenges. We hoped that the project would have a positive influence on the area and help to create interest to the centre and therefore effect the footfall.
I felt, my role was to create a project that the artists would want to become involved in. There was no immediate reward, they had to be prepared to give their time, their skills and expertise up front. We offered the pop-up shop as a platform for any activities that the artists wanted to provide. The walls were used to exhibit work, we held artist talks and offered an opening night to coincide with another popular event in the town centre.
There were a number of positive outcomes from the project, some of the artist have continued the connection with Refound, using the ReFound buildings in Belfast to hold exhibitions. The pieces have also moved up to the building for future events. The waste awareness officers have used the project and entered it into the awards section of Waste Reduction Week.
This also provided me with experience to learn from. The importance of place and the effect that it has on retailing. The impact that group use of social media can have. Retail businesses need to offer more than a product, the story, the experience and the added value that the customers will take away with them will encourage not only purchasing but word of mouth marketing that it so valuable at the moment.
I love making things and I love coming up with ideas even more, pulling things through and shaping ideas into something substantial. ReMade in Bangor proved to me that creating good work can happen!
