Liverpool
Home décor, textiles and accessories - that’s what one of Liverpool’s newest businesses, Main & Mersey Home Store, will offer to customers.
“Modern Scandinavian, with a little bit of vintage,” Shani Beadle, operator and co-owner, describes.
The business, located at 216 Main St., is set to open in a couple of weeks. Beadle’s co-owner is her husband, Andreas Arnmar.
“We were very lucky to find the space on Main Street,” said Beadle.
So far, she and Arnmar have emptied the space, stripped the floors and put new ones down.
“We’ve got to sand them, stain them, and then we’re re-siding the building and putting up signage and replacing windows and doors, so it’s quite a lot,” said Beadle.
Before moving to Nova Scotia, Arnmar was an autism consultant, working with autistic individuals as young as two and ranging to adulthood.
“It was my job to support them wherever they were,” he said.
Now, Arnmar will support Beadle with what she needs with respect to the business. Right now, that means helping refurbish the shop.
The idea behind Main & Mersey Home Store isn’t new to Beadle.
“I was a textile designer, and I had a company called Étoile Home in Britain for 10 years, so I designed cushions, table linens, the prints – manufactured them,” she said.
Beadle was also a production designer and set stylist for interiors.
With the new business, she plans to offer extra services, such as interior design and staging.
“We’ll see if there’s any demand for it.”
Choosing Nova Scotia
Everything has happened fairly quickly, said Beadle. The couple moved into their new house in Liverpool Aug. 31, after putting an offer on the house in July.
Beadle, Arnmar and their seven-year-old daughter, Atlee Arnmar, moved to Nova Scotia from London, England, although Beadle is from Vancouver, and Arnmar is from Malmo, Sweden.
Arnmar and Beadle always wanted to live by the water, so the couple explored a number of places in Europe and the United States. Canada was also a top contender, and eventually Liverpool won.
“It (Nova Scotia) was the one place in Canada that we could be on the water, and we could afford to do it here – we could afford to open a store as well,” explained Beadle.
Lifestyle was also an important factor in their decision. Beadle and Arnmar are interested in surfing and doing lots of other outdoor activities, including spending time on beaches. Nova Scotia is also about a five-hour flight west to Beadle’s family and five hours east to Arnmar’s.
Down the road, Arnmar and Beadle would like to build a house in Port Medway.
Beadle said she and her family have had a warm reception.
“Hopefully we’ve got a little something for everyone,” said Beadle, about the soon-to-open shop.
For more information about the Main & Mersey Home Store, visit https://www.facebook.com/mainandmerseyhomestore/.
