Les Hogan of Kaikohe (left) helps repaint the old Kaikohe Dairy Factory which is being reborn as a curio shop, art workshop and possibly even accommodation for the nearby cycle trail. Photo/Peter de Graaf
Les Hogan of Kaikohe (left) helps repaint the old Kaikohe Dairy Factory which is being reborn as a curio shop, art workshop and possibly even accommodation for the nearby cycle trail. Photo/Peter de Graaf
A long-defunct dairy factory is starting a new life as an art workshop, curio shop and possibly even accommodation for the nearby Twin Coast cycle trail.
The 1929 Kaikohe Co-op Dairy Company building, on Thorpe Rd near Kaikohe's transfer station, has been bought by local artist Jill Reilly.
She hasturned the landmark into an art space for weekend workshops teaching skills such as pottery, stained glass and greenstone carving.
A shop, called Tinker Tailor, will initially open on Mondays and Wednesdays and specialise in crafts, curios and collectibles, like Ms Reilly's existing shop, Passion8, on the Rawene waterfront. She will also sell native and fruit trees.
The new venture opened with a garage sale on March 4.
The former factory has been repainted to "pretty up" a scruffy corner of town, she said.
Its location, next to the Twin Coast/Pou Herenga Tai Cycle Trail, meant the building's living quarters had potential as accommodation for cycle tourists.
