I bought an old machine off Facebook - now I want it to be a Liverpool landmark

A woman has transformed a second-hand machine but needs help with one thing.

Becci Stephens, 28, from South Liverpool, has always had an eye for art and design, inspired by her dad Paul. Speaking to the ECHO, she said: “I think I've always been creative ever since I was growing up. My dad was really creative and I've got my creativity and artistic skills from him.”

With little else to do during covid, Becci set up her own art business, Palm House Studio, in 2020, selling bespoke greeting cards and art prints. She had to pause this venture due to other work as a designer but revived it in September last year.

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Her products are now stocked in the MerseyMade shop and Crosby Coffee on Lark Lane. Recently, Becci came up with a new product to sell. She saw an American artist using an old vending machine, and set about buying her own.

Becci said: "I bought it off Facebook marketplace. I was online and couldn't find anything. I found this guy in Runcorn selling one."

Despite not having a clear idea what to do with it, Becci bought it and decided to do it up 'Palm House style'.

Armed with a few cans of spray paint from Resurrection on Bold Street, she asked viewers of her TikTok channel what colours it should be. They suggested a mix of orange and pink to match the business' colour scheme.

Becci eventually settled on what to do with the machine. Instead of dispensing tattoo stickers, or snacks and drinks from the vending machine, you receive collectable artwork instead.

Becci said: “I've seen an artist in America do something similar. I felt like it went hand in hand with the prints that I sell and illustrations that I do.

“They’ll be quite small. You can put a £1 and it'll come out in a little cardboard sleeve. They'll be little collectables. They'll feel quite special in a way.”

Becci feels collecting physical artwork holds a similar retro appeal to the revival of vinyl records sales. She said: “I think it's part of the same movement. People are looking back to look forward. With records, it's that nostalgic feeling.

“The vending machine, it's not a mass produced vending machine that dispenses cans of Coca-Cola. Having that interactive element and the way people can use it, it has that nostalgic feel.”

The only thing Becci is unsure about is where to put the vending machine, which is currently in her house, inaccessible to the public.

She said: “I'd like it to be inside a retail space with a lot of footfall, just so it can be looked after inside rather than left out to the elements.”

Becci would prefer to have the vending machine in an independent business in Liverpool, but is open to any location. She adds she would be happy to do a specific print to celebrate the business who hosts the vending machine.

She hopes there can be several of these vending machines around the city if the first one proves successful.

She said: “I'd love them to be dotted around Liverpool, to become a little landmark that people can visit.”

You can find out more about Becci’s business here.

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