{"id":13534,"date":"2025-09-10T08:27:18","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T08:27:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/13534\/"},"modified":"2025-09-10T08:27:18","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T08:27:18","slug":"the-cobbler-review-wellington-boutique-hotel-in-hannahs-laneway-is-the-peak-of-industrial-chic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/13534\/","title":{"rendered":"The Cobbler review: Wellington boutique hotel in Hannah\u2019s Laneway is the peak of industrial chic"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"TheThe Cobbler’s discreet entrance off Hannah’s Laneway (below), where the old Hannah shoe factory opened a century ago.<\/p>\n

Built in 1923, the Hannah\u2019s factory once pumped out 1500 boots a week. The Cobbler is in a newer part of the building, which has seen a few changes since then.<\/p>\n

It was a dilapidated block of student flats when local couple Jarrod Strong and Mady Duxfield-Strong (both former Wellington uni students themselves) took it on, opening for their first guests in mid-2023.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Almost the whole building was stripped out but some original features have been retained, including the exposed brick and concrete walls. The moody atmosphere \u2013 think base notes of industrial chic \u2013 was created by Mady, who\u2019s a spatial designer. <\/p>\n

\" The Cobbler, a boutique hotel in an old shoe factory on Hannah’s Laneway in inner-city Wellington.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s all very classy and minimalist, with dark hues offset by golden lighting and framed drawings by architectural illustrator Josh Currie hung on the walls.<\/p>\n

Call me shallow, but what won me over was the goody bag of pretzels and lollies waiting for me on the table, including an oat milk chocolate bar from the Wellington Chocolate Factory, a few doors down. <\/p>\n

I polished them off while perusing the in-house magazine Noho, which loosely translates from te reo as \u201csettle in\u201d. And that\u2019s exactly what I did.<\/p>\n

\"OriginalOriginal features, including the exposed brick walls, were retained from the original factory building. Photo \/ Lana Young<\/p>\n

Rooms: A total of 12 units range from one-bedroom studios to two-bedroom apartments with more living space, and a roomy loft suite called The Library. <\/p>\n

The bed, with its plump linen duvet, was luxurious to snuggle into, and I slept oblivious to the outside world. <\/p>\n

However, some rooms overlook the laneway, and this is a working part of the city, so be prepared for the possibility of some noise.<\/p>\n

\"AA backlit mirror doinates the sleek bathroom. Photo \/ Lana Young<\/p>\n

Bathroom: A backlit mirror is surrounded by white tiling that seems to ripple down to the ceramic handbasin, its matte graphite finish echoed by procelain tiles on the back wall of the shower.<\/p>\n

Great water pressure from the dual shower heads and accoutrements include bathrobes, a hairdryer and toiletries from RAAD, an Auckland skincare range that provides refills in biodegradable cardboard envelopes. <\/p>\n

Facilities: The Cobbler is strictly accommodation only, with no in-house eatery or room service. All the studios and apartments have a kitted-out kitchen with cooktop, microwave, toaster etc so self-catering is an option.<\/p>\n

\"AA cafe, barbershop, florist and gift store rolled into one. Photo \/ Wellington NZ<\/p>\n

Jarrod and Mady also own Eva\u2019s Garage, which is right next door. A former mechanics workshop, it\u2019s a cafe (you can sit at a table inside the shell of a red 1952 Chevy), a barbershop, a florist and an eclectic gift store. <\/p>\n

There\u2019s nothing like a bit of speed shopping, so while my flat white was being brewed, I scored a pair of silver drop earrings and a handcrafted coffee mug from Payge Ceramics, an artisan pottery in Tauranga. <\/p>\n

Note: If you\u2019ve come with a car, there\u2019s no parking in the laneway itself but plenty of options nearby, including three carpark buildings.<\/p>\n

\"MrMr Go’s.<\/p>\n

Food and drink: Honestly, the choices within stumbling distance are dazzling. After my morning pit stop at Eva\u2019s, I went to Shelly Bay Baker for a second breakfast. <\/p>\n

At night, lights sparkle in the alleyway, luring you into cocktail bars, brew pubs and a score of restaurants ranging from Asian street food at Mr Go\u2019s to the Gorilla Burger food truck on Leeds St. <\/p>\n

In the neighbourhood: Flanked by Cuba St and Courtney Place, The Cobbler is right in the heart of Wellington\u2019s shopping and entertainment district, and it\u2019s only a few minutes\u2019 walk from the waterfront. <\/p>\n

Head north for Circa Theatre, Whairepo Lagoon and the New Zealand Portrait Gallery. Head south for Te Papa and the Sunday morning Harbourside Market (open 7.30am-1.30 pm in winter). <\/p>\n

\"CrumpetCrumpet cocktail bar on Manners St, one of dozens of bars and eateries within a stone’s throw of The Cobbler.<\/p>\n

Keep on walking and Oriental Bay is a 20-minute seaside stroll away. There are plenty of fancier places, but I can recommend the empanadas and traditional Argentine pastries at Aye!, opposite the band rotunda.<\/p>\n

Sustainability: A notable absence of plastic, from the glass milk bottle in the fridge to fully recyclable\/reusable toiletries in the bathroom, LED lights and energy-efficient heating. The Cobbler is also signed up to Wellington\u2019s Race to 2030 initiative to further reduce carbon emissions.<\/p>\n

Accessibility: One fully accessible room and the entranceway, hallways and lift have all been designed with this in mind. Overall, good access for anyone with mobility issues.<\/p>\n

Price: From $180 per night for a one-bedroom studio. <\/p>\n

Contact: For more information, visit thecobblerhotel.co.nz <\/p>\n

New Zealand Herald was a guest of The Cobbler and WellingtonNZ.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Cobbler’s discreet entrance off Hannah’s Laneway (below), where the old Hannah shoe factory opened a century ago.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13535,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[15903,15892,15895,15891,15901,6259,13741,6541,6276,15893,6735,78,1404,15902,185,15896,15894,6093,111,139,69,1118,13028,762,15899,145,223,15897,15898,52,15900],"class_list":["post-13534","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-alleyway","tag-boutique","tag-chic","tag-cobbler","tag-coolest","tag-door","tag-factory","tag-foot","tag-gets","tag-hannahs","tag-hotel","tag-in","tag-industrial","tag-innercity","tag-is","tag-joanna","tag-laneway","tag-little","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-of","tag-peak","tag-review","tag-shoe","tag-technology","tag-the","tag-wane","tag-wellheeled","tag-wellington","tag-wellingtons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13534","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13534"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13534\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13535"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13534"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13534"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13534"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}