Monuments

Brenchi’s * 1929

Category: Oranjestad
Location intersection Wilhelminastraat/Ooststraat
Year Built: 1929
Open to Public: No
Ownership: private
The house known as “Cas di Brenchi” was built in Oranjestad in 1929.
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Bruno Arends (Brenchi) was a well-known merchant in Oranjestad. The construction of this house was in the hands of Brenchi’s older brother Jacobo (Coco) Arends. In 1932 the construction of the house was completed.
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Bruno Arends and his wife Rofina moved into the house with their first child Susana. In the this house 3 more children were born. They all grew up together on the second floor of the building.
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In 1934, Aruba Hardware opened its doors.
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 Across the street (Ooststraat), Brenchi already had his own business called St. Nicolas Store where groceries were sold. Later St. Nicolas Store was closed down and the building became part of Aruba Hardware. It has now been restored and is now a restaurant, ‘Taste My Aruba’.
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Thanks to Brenchi’s vision, Aruba Hardware has grown to become B.J. Arends and Sons which consisted of a hardware store, a homecenter and a department of construction materials in Oranjestad and San Nicolas.
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After a couple of years Brenchi’s children took over the businesses. In the 1970s due to the difficulty of climbing stairs in Ooststraat, Brenchi retired to Ponton. The barracks in Ooststraat served as a warehouse for a while.
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At the beginning of the 21st century the house passed to the Harms-Arends family who completely restored it and brought it back to its original form. In 2013 the restoration was completed. 
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In 2014, the Dutch Gerrit Rietveld Academy established a preparatory program year for the Academy in Brenchi’s building: the Academy of Fine Arts and Design Aruba.
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Since the Academy discontinued its activities, the space has remained available to be rented to new tenants or for receptions and private celebrations, among other things.
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Brenchi’s building anno 2025.
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