Welton Becket & Associates, Architects & Engineers Murray Erick Associates, Structural Engineers Hillburg, Byler & Hengstler, Mechanical Engineers Robert Herrick Carter, Landscape Architect

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LOCATED IN WESTWOOD VILLAGE, in suburban Los Angeles, this department store with restaurant on its top floor is especially interesting for its 3-level arrangement of parking and access. By closely correlating garaging and retailing, the architect has achieved a scheme that permits the customer to park his car only a few yards from and at the same level as the section he is visiting. Total parking space will handle 1000 cars.

The design capitalizes on the natural slope of the 4-acre site by providing two principal merchandising levels, each with its pedestrian entrance directly from the street, as well as making possible parking at each level. Six entrances enable the shopper to reach his destination in the shortest possible time, whether he arrives on foot or by car.

Working closely with Raymond Dexter, Bullock's planning director, the architect completely designed the interior, including dress labels and wrapping paper.

The three plans above show how the three levels are articulated for both pedestrians and cars. Middle level ramp entrance from the street is shown above, right. Note the oversized faience tile which was designed by the architect for this job and used on several of the building's elevations.

Several materials are used for the exterior walls: concrete painted pale green, Arizona mint stone, fieldstone, and architect designed large size faience tile. The extensive use of tropical planting emphasizes the California character of the store's appearance

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

COMPLETE SIMPLICITY in both plan and construction mark this new store building at Waikiki. When the project was started only two or three prospective tenants were interested, and maximum flexibility was called for to meet the needs of whatever tenants might eventually rent space. The site, on the grounds of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, is 120 ft deep, with a 438-ft frontage on Kalakaua Avenue, one of Waikiki's main thoroughfares. Off-street parking was a must. Another requirement. stipulated in the property lease, was that the total height. of the building be restricted to 30 ft.

To simplify financing, the building was designed as three identical units, each 136 ft long and 52 ft deep. which could be built one at a time, but which would look like one continuous structure when completed. The three units also made it easier to follow the slight curve in the street and the slight drop in sidewalk elevation.

Each unit consists of six 22 ft 8 in. bays, suitable for use either singly or in combination. Ceilings are high enough to permit installation of mezzanines if desired. Flexibility is further stressed in the basic structure a simple flat slab resting on three rows of seven columns each. Front walls are glass from floor to ceiling, rear walls concrete block, plastered. Dividing partitions are metal lath and plaster. A parking lot runs the full length of the building at the rear, reached by two 10-ft passages between units.

The three units are tied together chiefly by continuous concrete overhang. Tenants who leased space before building was finished had privilege of taking allowance for basic design to apply to cost of shop designed especially for their own requirements; McInerny's, in first building, had special front using a native sandstone.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

THE Boysen Company's Honolulu building was planned not merely as a local outlet store, but as division headquarters for the Pacific trade. Provision had to be made, therefore, for easy space expansion as required. The solution was this one-story building consisting of five stores and a warehouse; three of the stores are "in reserve," and will be leased to other firms until such time as the owning company needs more space.

Cyril W. Lemmon, Architect
Douglas Freeth, Associate
Lo & Katavolos, Engineers
Wilbert Choy's Makiki Nursery, Landscape Architects

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 In the 1950s, Sears in Honolulu was a comfortable cornerstone of daily life, blending retail convenience with island charm. Located near Ala Moana, the store welcomed shoppers with open aisles, polished counters, and the hum of early air conditioning. Locals would browse the catalogs, pick out radios and household goods, and grab a cold soda before heading out into the tropical sunshine — making it more than just a store, but a familiar part of the neighborhood rhythm.

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IN appearance a two-story building, this Honolulu store has three selling levels and a total of about 200,000 ft of floor space. It was pushed a full story underground to keep it in scale with its contemporary neighbors.

Truck ramp and freight entrance are on the principal street front (left). Off-street parking areas can accommodate 500 cars.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

While Wikipedia only mentions Lord and Taylor (1954) as the first major anchor of Bishop's Corner Shopping Center in West Hartford, Connecticut - it was also the first Lord & Taylor store outside of the New York metropolitan area - as you can see from both the postcard above and the photo below, the shopping center also had a Woolworth, and according to the back of the postcard, the buildings of the shoppign center were made of white brick, trimmed with Swedish granite. Parking facilites for 1,500 cars.

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Streamlined department stores and super markets are a far cry from the old general store on the village green, but they have come about because Connecticut's cities are spilling over into the suburbs. The mechanical skill of the people, coupled with Yankee ingenuity for discovering new custom- ers for their products, has made this a state of opportunity in industry. Hartford, largest city in the state as well as state capital, is a financial-industrial center, the insurance hub of the U.S.A. West Hartford, home of our House of Ideas, is a typical growing suburb. Here, near the site of the first Dutch trading post in the state, are a 20th-century shopping center, good schools (a new one is going up two blocks from the House of Ideas), bus transportation to Hartford and a park with tennis courts and play areas. These factors are making West Hartford an attractive place in which to live.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | july 1954

 THE DESIGN of the store front dramatizes both levels. The staircase, which leads to fitting rooms and space for future expansion, instead of being unobtrusive, is a dominant feature of the interior. The suit department in the rear of the store is raised slightly and a soffit is introduced to create a clearcut space division and a more intimate sales atmosphere. A fireplace and controlled lighting in this area heighten the personal effect desired by the owner.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

SEPARATE men's and women's departments are incorporated within the confines of a narrow rectangular site. Both entrances, one on Wilshire Boulevard and the other opening onto the parking lot, are given equal importance. The store is divided in the center by dressing rooms and executive offices. Distinction between men's and women's departments is further emphasized by using different decorative and color schemes. Area limitations are circumvented by an open merchandising plan. Floating racks of stainless steel suspended from the ceiling by wrought iron members, floor racks, and egg-crate counter fixtures are all light in design to increase feeling of space.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

THE PROBLEM was to not discourage low income sales by an overplush interior. The floor plan features three areas - display in store front area, intermediate area for accessories and impulse buying, and main sales area. Stock is kept off to one side, the entrance to it concealed by a decorative baffle wall in the rear. Mirrors increase the apparent width of the front area. Flexibility is the keynote of both sales areas. Lighting and cases hanging on mirror wall are interesting details.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

THIS PLAN SHOWS, to quote the architect, a logical sequence of customer traffic, starting near the highest traffic area with merchandise that has quick appeal, high unit profit and fast turnover and is bought on impulse, then proceeding with location of other merchandise lending itself to related selling or logical association, then to areas which ordinarily get the least traffic and to merchandise which is scarce or staple and therefore is bought on demand.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

INTERNAL space is quite confined in width as well as depth, yet the architect handled the space so cleverly that the customer is not aware that it is really very small. Location of the LP record rack opposite the listening booths makes for easy customer selection. Use of acoustical material on both ceiling and floor add to customer comfort. In the demonstration room at the back, a customer can relax and listen to various combinations of equipment and recording devices.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 This supermarket with front and side parking features clear spans, clean-looking sanitary materials, incandescent lighting, summer winter ventilation, well proportioned interiors. Noise control, ease of maintenance, pleasing color are other plus items. Materials handling was a prime design consideration.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954

 

Store layout uses full depth of irregularly shaped city block. It fronts on both streets, with parking lot entrance as important as sidewalk entrance. Interior circulation is controlled by clever use of baffling design.

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source: Design for Modern Merchandising | An Architectural Record Book | 1954