Labours of love on show in new Liverpool sofa venture

Name: Darren Connolly and Paula Smith

Business Address:

Contact: 07505 365178

A firm of Liverpool sofa makers with a passion for unique design have launched a showroom for their labours of love.

Darren Connolly and his partner Paula Smith opened Aura on Aigburth Road, after 22 years of making chairs and sofas to order from a workshop in Wavertree.

Their vision of a shop front for creations such as the ‘Love Bucket’ and ‘The Faithless’ became reality with help from business support initiative Dream High.

Dream High panel members gave marketing support and helped the Aura team to access funding.

“Their sofas and chairs are works of art and Darren puts his heart into his work,” said Dream High enterprise facilitator Claire Chang.

Darren and Paula have been producing bespoke seating for clients’ homes and businesses around the North West – winning new orders as their reputation spread through word of mouth. By opening a showroom and also launching a comprehensive website, they hope to expand their business.

Paula said: “We have invested in the shop and a website so that we can offer our services to a wider market. We love our sofas and we want more people to see them and to love them.”

Aura designs are based on the customer’s ideas and choice of colour, shape and size. The seating combines robust quality and comfort, with all frames made of 100 per cent kiln-dried birch wood, dowel-joined and screwed for guaranteed strength; and all leathers used are high quality Italian.

To view examples, visit www.aura-uk.com or call Paula on 07505 365178.