Unloved corner of Leeds landmark Mike's Carpets given new lease of life
It’s the west Leeds landmark which is familiar to generations of residents and motorists who drive passed it everyday.
Mike’s Carpets sits on the corner of Branch Road and Stanningley Road in the heart of Armley and has welcomed customers for decades.
Yet the upper floor of the heritage building - complete with original fireplaces, exposed brick and period features - had been sitting unused for years, until now.
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A renovation has been carried out to create a small workspace and community hub.
It involved using reclaimed materials and second hand furniture throughout, with original brickwork and worn plaster preserved rather than covered.
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It is home to Flockwork, a co-working space shaped by sustainability and local reinvestment and an example of how older commercial buildings in west Leeds can be given new life without large-scale redevelopment.
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Flockwork said: “We didn’t want to erase the building’s character. We wanted to work with it - and create something useful for the local community at the same time.”
The site was originally built as a Methodist Chapel in 1905 and is a Grade II-listed building. It has been home to Mike’s Carpets since 1979, which remains on the lower floor.
Tributes flooded in last year following the death of the company’s founder, Mike Smith, who died aged 79 after suffering heart failure.