A new Venetian plaster shop has opened in Ramsbottom and is already proving to be a hit with customers.

Micro Cement UK welcomed customers to its Bolton Street for the first time on Saturday, January 21.

And so far, the business, which offers bespoke surface designs and furniture, has had many visitors entering the store.

Speaking about the opening day, owner Ben Owen said: “It was quite hectic but very positive, it was busier than I expected.

“Only positive things came out of it, I’ve had quite a lot of quotes off it.

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“To be honest I was quite overwhelmed with it because I did think it might just be friends and family showing support.

“I didn’t have enough time to speak to everyone as much as I would have liked because there were that many people who came in.

“It was really positive and really good.”

The business specialises in micro cement and Venetian plaster finishes.

Micro cement can be applied to walls, floors, ceilings, worktops, furniture and many other surfaces and is ideally suited to wet areas like shower rooms, bathrooms and kitchen splash backs.

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Venetian plaster is mainly applied to walls, ceilings and fireplace media walls and the finishes are tailored to the customer.

Ben added: “We do decorative finishes, and every finish is bespoken to the customer, and we have lots of samples.

“I’ve been doing this for a number of years and I work with people who have had over 30 years’ worth of experience.

“Over two years ago I set up on my own online business in lockdown, which was a risk, but it paid off.”

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It is the first shop Ben has owned and was keen to open it in Ramsbottom, where he is from.

He added: “Not many people know about Venetian plaster in general.

“I opened a shop so people could come and see it in person instead of just online.

“We make bespoke furniture and artwork as well.

“There’s so many doors and avenues you can go with it so we do as much as we can.”

Ben said that he will be looking to give opportunities to the younger generation to learn this unique trade in the near future.

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