Drawing on her background in architecture and passion for sustainability, Ren Fernando is leading a movement to give people in crisis a fresh chance at dignity and safety. Her organisation ReLove is helping women and their families rebuild, one furnished home at a time.
When Ren Fernando trained as an architect, she never imagined she’d one day be running an organisation that supports survivors of domestic violence and people in crisis to rebuild their lives.
As a co-founder of ReLove, she’s now at the centre of a community-driven movement that gives people across Sydney safety and agency during the most difficult days of their lives.
Fernando’s career began in architecture, before she branched into the fine arts. With a clear knack for design, she found herself questioning where she could have the greatest impact.
The answer came unexpectedly in 2019, when she met her now co-founder, Ben Stammer, while volunteering. They soon joined forces to launch the Run for Good Project, offering free running training for people who wanted to get involved in social good projects.
Running groups shut down when COVID hit but Fernando and Stammer were still working with the Women and Girls Emergency Centre. It opened their eyes to the housing crisis facing women and children moving into safe housing, often with nothing to their names.
“We thought that the housing itself was going to be the main issue – and of course, that is still true,” Fernando tells Women’s Agenda.
“But there was a missing piece of the puzzle: how do you make that transition into housing safe and sustainable, if you don’t have anything in it?”
What began as a mission to furnish five homes quickly became something much bigger – and eventually, ReLove was born.
During lockdowns, there was a clear opportunity to connect quality pieces of second-hand furniture with people who really needed them.
Fast forward to 2025, and ReLove is supporting 25 families every week to move into new housing. With the support of corporate partners, volunteers and community donations, the charity supplies and delivers essential home furnishings to vulnerable people to give them a fresh start.
Most people supported by ReLove are women, especially single mums with young children who are leaving situations of domestic abuse. The organisation also supports people leaving incarceration and those who’ve experienced homelessness.
“About 75% of the people we support are under the age of 25,” Fernando explains.
So how does ReLove work?
ReLove is driven to give their clients the opportunity for dignity, agency and choice. The ReLove Free Store in Alexandria is a safe space, run primarily by volunteers, where people in crisis can come to choose the home furnishings and essentials they need to start over. ReLove then ensures each home is fully furnished within 48 hours.
“[When] they walk in the door, they get to choose everything they need so they can build their life as they would like it,” Fernando says.
“We’re giving people not just these basics, but also the scented candles, the paintings, the pillows, the artwork, the throws. It’s everything and it’s giving people this real moment of agency.
“Everybody who walks in our door has had some level of trauma and crises, and that ability to be able to get into safe housing is so incredibly difficult for people.”
ReLove is also offering a huge environmental solution to a social problem. The organisation has saved more than 2,500 tonnes of pre-loved furniture from ending up in landfill.
Fernando and her co-founder Ben Stammer have also launched a social enterprise arm called Re-Story, which sells donated high-end, designer furniture. The sales fund ReLove’s free services.
“If we sell a chair for $500, we can furnish a home for a family and give them $10,000- $15,000 worth of furniture and homewares,” Fernando says.
“You can walk away with a beautiful design, and you can change the life of somebody who’s trying to start over at the same time.”
Building new futures for women
Fernando is passionate about her mission to provide agency to people in crisis, especially women and children who are leaving desperate, abusive situations.
“People still don’t understand why women can’t leave. But you’re asking people to do this monumental, logistic thing. It’s a real thing that women are choosing between living in fear and poverty. It’s real and it’s complex,” she says.
“It is an incredibly difficult challenge for women to leave, to be safe, to find new housing and start over with all of those things that they need to do to get their kids back to school.”
And it’s the small acts of kindness Fernando sees every day that keep her going.
From volunteers donating their time at the ReLove Free Store, to members of the public arriving with a second-hand sofa strapped to the roof of their car, the goodwill is abundant.
“There’s a lot of futility that people are feeling at the moment and one of the things that I feel so privileged to be part of at ReLove is the power of humanity and the power of human connection,” Fernando says.
“When you bring people together and they feel a common drive and purpose, it’s incredible what you can do.”
Thanks to our partner CommBank. CommBank supports women in business and the community across all industries and sectors through its Women in Focus team. For more information head to WomeninFocus.com.au.
This article represents opinions and views of the interviewees’ personal experiences only. It does not have regard to the situation or needs of any reader and must not be relied upon as advice. It is not intended to imply any recommendation or opinion about a financial product or service. Before acting on this information, consider its appropriateness to your circumstances.