Twenty brides have been left devastated after their dream wedding dresses went up in smoke in the Cathedral Buildings fire in Belfast city centre.
The blaze left dozens of businesses, creatives, and hospitality venues in turmoil as their space was destroyed, and among those are dozens of pieces of precious clothing belonging to the customers of Perfect Fit, a dressmaking company based on the ground floor.
Hazel Alderdice, owner of Perfect Fit, is not just dealing with the stress of losing her business and the customers it has affected, she's also eight months pregnant.
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She said: “I've been growing this business for 15 years. I've lost everything that I've accumulated over that time - years of making patterns, buying technical pattern books, buying specialist machinery, mannequins, fabric, thread - every little tool in a dressmaker's arsenal.
“But the worst thing is 20 brides have lost their wedding dresses. Possibly the most significant piece of clothing they will own in their lifetime, chosen with the greatest of care, now gone.
“Their weddings are fast approaching and their options are running out. My heart bleeds for all of them.”
Throughout the building, 14 businesses and organisations including culture, arts and voluntary spaces watched on as over 50 firefighters tried to bring the blaze under control to their workspaces on October 3.
Around 40 people who worked in the building have been left displaced and concerned about the future.
Chiho Tang, lead creative at Oranga, a graphic design agency in the building said: “Waking up to the news on Monday was an absolute shock.
“Not only do I have the majority of nearly a decade of my portfolio in that building but all our tech equipment was very recently replaced with very high-spec machines.
“It’s all so surreal. We’ve been there five years and worked hard on creating a great space to work in and welcome clients to. Really difficult to take in to be honest.”
Media and marketing company Excalibur Press were also among the affected businesses. Owner Tina Calder said: “I can’t even begin to articulate how I feel. Although it’s no comfort saying it, many of the tangible assets will be able to be replaced in time.
“However, what I cannot replace is 27 years of journalism and media history. I’ve hard copy clippings of every single story I’ve ever written, every publication I worked on and edited. Literally everything I have achieved in my career is evidenced in that building.
“I have gone from crying inconsolably to trying to be practical and working on our rebuild all week. But it’s exhausting. Emotions are high, everyone has lost so much."
Paul Kelly, design director at Form Native, a brand and digital design studio, was one of those people. He arrived to work as normal on Monday to find his studio engulfed in flames with eight fire trucks at the scene.
Paul said: “The fire at Cathedral Buildings has profoundly impacted my business. Design is all about communication, bringing different things together to create something new, exciting, compelling.
“That’s what we had in Cathedral Buildings, a mixture of people, experiences, skills and attitudes that make working in the city rewarding.
“My studio held the physical library and archive of twenty years' practice – the irreplaceable things that nourish your creativity and give you a working home. Like so many others we are heartbroken to lose that. Now we want to work hard not to lose our community as well.
“I am deeply grateful that no lives were lost and now aware that we want space where we are not just surviving but able to thrive again.
“I want this to be another opportunity for us collectively to think about what a city is and who it is for – liveable and alive for everyone.”
A crowdfunding campaign has now been set up to support each of the tenants in the building who all have different needs but who are committed to working together to develop a new hub of creativity within the heart of arts and culture in the Cathedral Quarter.
For more information, see here.
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