For shops week, the show visited Hay-on-Wye on the Herefordshire-Powys border for its quarter finals.
During the hour-long episode, the four remaining designers were left battling it out to stay in the competition and be in with the change of winning a partnership with a high street retailer to launch their own homewares collection.
Designers Lia and Sophie were given gift shop Oil & Oak, while Emmely and Duran were tasked with improving guitar shop Wye Fret.
Two days, two carpenters, two decorators and £4,000 later, the new-look shops were revealed to their owners.
Designer Sophie working on the transformation of Oil & Oak gift shop in Hay-on-Wye (Image: BBC/DSP/Georgina Vincent)
Designer Emmely making the statement guitar piece for the window of Wye Fret in Hay-on-Wye (Image: BBC/DSP/Georgina Vincent)
At Chris Williams’ Wye Fret in Castle Street, a changing room became a sound booth, a stage was built for for monthly gigs and the shop’s empty window was filled with a stunning illuminated papier-mâché guitar statement piece. Atmospheric dark green walls with a black ceiling gave the shop a completely new look, and the walls covered with the guitars for sale.
Oil & Oak, which features 40 different local makers leads to an eclectic, mad and mis-matched look – something artist and owner Abi Coombs wanted to change.
From cluttered to curated, the shop was transformed with new free-standing and wall-mounted displays, with terracotta, pale pistachio and cream picked for the colour palette.
When the pair saw their new shops, they couldn’t help but grin ear-to-ear, with Abi staggered what was achieved in two days and was left covered in goose pimples.
(Image: BBC/DSP/Georgina Vincent)
Giving the pair of designers a hug, Chris said: “I’ll never be able to thank you enough.”
Judges Michelle Ogundehin and retail expert Ross Bailey picked Oil & Oak, also in Castle Street, as the standout space, meaning designers Sophie and Lia made it through to next week’s semi-final.
(Image: BBC/DSP/Georgina Vincent)
In the end, it was Duran who dropped out of the competition, with Emmely through to the penultimate round.
Speaking to the County Times’ sister paper the Hereford Times before the episode was aired at 8pm on BBC One on Wednesday (May 26), Mr Williams said he was visiting a guitar factory in the Czech Republic when he got the call from the BBC – and he put the phone down thinking it was a prank.
He said it was a surreal experience, adding: “You’re trusting someone with your legacy.
“It’s granted the business a new lease of life.”
Meanwhile, Oil & Oak said: “The super awesome Alan Carr and Michelle Ogundehin came along with their amazing team to give the shop a makeover, and it’s everything we ever could have wanted – better than we could have imagined.”