The Coach and Horses Hotel, which stood on the corner of Hamilton and Tancred Streets in Hokitika, was purchased by blacksmith James Renton in the 1870s.

[1][2] He used the ground floor for his business, Renton and Company, which expanded to encompass ironmongery and the importing and retailing of general merchandise.

[1] In February 1906, the firm announced its intention to replace their existing premises with a new, larger building in brick to meet the needs of their expanding business.

[5] The two-storey plastered brick building, rectangular in plan, was designed in neoclassical style, although much more utilitarian and less ornamented than Griffin's recently completed library nearby.

An appeal was taken to the Environment Court by objectors, and an agreement was reached in August 2016 between the Renton family interests and the appellants for the latter to purchase the building with the intention of preserving it as part of a proposed heritage precinct.