Sunrise yoga at Well-Fest opening
Six repurposed industrial workshops housing a raft of boutique eateries, gift stores and zen spaces will open their doors with sunrise yoga, cooking workshops and a blowwave hair bar this weekend.
The distinctive grey and orange Welder complex, in Welles St between Manchester and Colombo streets, brands itself as a health and wellbeing sanctuary with its developers hoping to help make Christchurch the world’s most ‘‘liveable’’ city.
The 13 tenants in the business hub, created by local property development firm Box 112, include a yoga studio, a plant-based treat store, two bread and baked goods specialists, a wholefoods refillery, a juicery, a wine and tapas bar, a yakitori restaurant and a florist – many of them businesses started in Canterbury.
Box 112 frontman James Stringer earlier said the company’s mantra was to make Christchurch ‘‘the most liveable city in the world’’ through a string of projects to rejuvenate the semi-industrial area south of Tuam St.
Sollos gift store and shared creative space was the last tenancy to sign up for the complex, with the team scrambling to get everything ready for a soft launch day tomorrow at The Well-Fest, but a spokesman said it could take another week or so to finalise the space.
Alternatively, free yoga classes, cooking lessons and sustainable shopping tips, as well as a blow-wave bar and other pop-up events run by store-owners will keep guests entertained from 6am until late in the evening.
Sollos spokesman Jason Pemberton said the store would be run by the people behind Felt.co.nz, an online craft marketplace for locally-made goods and gifts, but would operate separately.
Felt launched online in 2007 as a place for crafters to advertise their wares before Etsy, Trade Me and Facebook Marketplace
The new wholefoods refillery, GoodFor, has been serving customers for about a month at The Welder. Pictured is store operator Emily Maher.
dominated the market. Sellers were constantly competing with cheap, massproduced products in an already tough market, so Sollos hoped to offer a designated place for handmade goods and to celebrate the people who made them, Pemberton said.
‘‘Say a hand-carved wooden spoon made from repurposed wood from the old rowing shed doors before the quakes – doesn’t that have more meaning than a $3 pack from Kmart?,’’ the Christchurch businessman said.
The same model, favouring one-off, custom items, had been adapted for the store, showcasing artisan products made by Canterbury craftspeople. Most retail models were built off mass supply chains, making it difficult to make the Sollos model sustainable, but it was worth it to see the excitement people had when they found something ‘‘really special’’, Pemberton said.
Workshops featuring skilled silversmiths, leather workers and potters would be held in store and visible to passers-by from the huge windows overlooking the Welder courtyard.
Those keen to get their hands dirty learning a new craft could sign up to evening classes, or watch the masters at work while browsing the store, he said.
‘‘Some items just have to be seen in real life to be appreciated,’’ Pemberton said.
Products would be a mix of wholesale wares and items being sold on consignment.
Glen and Linda Turner, the creative minds behind Studio Three Two Four, a Christchurch-based small business specialising in wooden mosaic wall art and home decor pieces, planned to sell their oneof-a-kind pieces in the store.
The garden area in the Welder complex will be a shared space.
‘‘Buying handmade repurposed items doesn’t mean that it is poor quality or that it is of lesser value than something bought new from a big box store ... in fact, it is the opposite,’’ Glen Turner said.
‘‘You always get the warm fuzzy feeling of buying real things made by real people, not just another mass produced throw-away item.’’
Also in The Welder is GoodFor, a wholefoods refillery that has gained a cult following among sustainable foodies.
Marketing manager Tessa Mak said things had been selling ‘‘really well’’ since the store opened about a month ago – launching earlier than the rest of the precinct.
‘‘The city has been hanging out for something like this so it is great that it is finally there.’’
Outdoor Cinema The Arts Centre, summer months
A dozen films are set to screen at a Christchurch outdoor cinema this summer, including The Lion King, Paddington, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Sione’s Wedding, Elf, The Truman Show, Dumbo and festive favourite Love Actually. Cinema nights are on December 13 and 14, January 24 and 25, and February 7 and 8. Child-friendly family films will start at 5.30pm followed by movies for adults at 8pm. Entry is by donation.
Returned servicemen panel TSB Space at
Tu¯ ranga, Sunday from 2pm
Three returned servicemen from World War II and Korea will discuss their experiences at an educational panel discussion in the library. Roger Gargett, who will speak, witnessed the aftermath of bomb attacks and was then drafted as a guard at the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal. He will be joined by veterans Jim Calder and Jack Brunton. The event is free.
New Zealand Riding for the Disabled fundraiser Ohinetahi, Governors Bay Rd, November 10 from 11am
Enjoy a picnic lunch and spend the afternoon listening to live music, checking out the artwork and fashion offerings on display and wander through fields of plantings. Tickets to the fundraiser cost $35, which includes entry to garden, a packed adult lunch, live music and a fashion show. Tickets available are from Country Lane, Stan’s Pharmacy, Terra Viva or call Carol Aitken on 0211796702. All proceeds to North Canterbury Riding for the Disabled, a not-for-profit charity providing therapeutic riding sessions for people with disabilities.