Grzegorz Layer creates a menswear store inside a former sewing factory
A concrete staircase ascends to a mezzanine office at this menswear showroom inside a former sewing factory in the Polish city of Katowice, which was renovated by architect Grzegorz Layer (+ slideshow).
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_4.jpg)
Grzegorz Layer renovated a two-storey space in the abandoned factory building to create a permanent showroom, sales office and workshop for mens accessories label Poszetka.
The building is located on a street that is home to other creative businesses and shops, including a boutique with stripped-back plaster walls that sells products by local designers.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_1.jpg)
"Good company helped to take up the challenge which proved to be the revitalisation of a sewing factory neglected for years, although its potential could be felt from the very beginning," said owner Joanna Krajewska Godziek.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_784_7.jpg)
Having previously operated the business from home, with sales limited to an online store, Krajewska Godziek decided to move manufacturing and sales to the new premises.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_7.jpg)
The main space was previously divided into five smaller rooms but has been opened up to create a bright showroom with a shopfront at one end and large windows behind the sales point at the other, filling it with natural light.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_0.jpg)
An original mezzanine crossing this space has been converted into an office, which is reached by a simple concrete staircase supported by metal beams.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_3.jpg)
The textured wooden floorboards and beams on the underside of the mezzanine are left exposed and create a feature in the showroom below.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
Original details including metal doors, hooks, clothes hangers and lamps were retained and used within the interior to create a link with the building's history as a place of manufacturing.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_8.jpg)
A sales desk installed towards the rear of the ground floor space is also used as a work space where customers can see the products being created.
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_9.jpg)
A doorway next to the sales point flanked by raw unpainted brick walls leads to a tailoring workshop containing storage for fabric and equipment for transforming it into ties, pocket squares, bow ties and scarves.
"The workplace is not isolated, it is a part of the sales area," said Krajewska Godziek. "This allows the clients to have contact with the process of product development and to learn about the company from the inside."
![Old sewing factory renovation by Grzegorz Layer](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/08/Old-sewing-factory-renovation-by-Grzegorz-Layer_dezeen_468_6.jpg)
Original brick walls have been whitewashed to provide a neutral backdrop for products displayed on vintage furniture and shelving.
Photography is by Dorota Zyguła-Siemieńska.