Commercial Architecture October 2017 - 58

PROJECT

interiors

Above. Polished concrete is a practical material that develops a nice patina over time, while it's integral, through-body soft color conceals
gouges and scrapes that occur in high-traffic environments.
Right. In addition to its aesthetics and ease of care, polished concrete flooring can contribute to potential LEED points.

contractor, QuestMark Flooring, Canonsburg, PA, they

store design placed a greater focus on polished concrete

ished-concrete flooring have positive environmental ben-

were able to achieve "some really wonderful textures-like

with the retrofits of their major New York City flagship

efits and can contribute to potential LEED points.

a poor man's terrazzo," said Smith.

locations.
FLAGSHIP STORES

American Eagle Outfitters, a nearly 40-year-old cloth-

"Once we made the decision, we were off and running

ing retailer, has grown to more than a thousand stores by

with it," explained Gary Staso, the retailer's director of

Ultimately, the New York City flagship stores were the

managing to remain hip despite aggressive and fash-

construction. "It polished up really well."

proving grounds for the polished-concrete flooring.

ion-savvy competition.

Furthermore, Staso said, since some malls don't main-

These locations "tend to be the laboratories for developing new ideas," explained Smith.

"We used to say that we had a beach-house aesthetic,"

tain air-conditioning when closed at night, there is no

said Smith, "a natural earthiness with some industrial

control over ambient temperature and humidity. Wood

The flagship store on 34th Street in Manhattan re-

overtones." He compared the look to white shiplap, the

flooring can expand and contract, affecting durability

ceived a major remodel in 2009, a complete gutting of the

wooden board for barns and seasonal homes.

and surface quality. Compared to primarily all-wooden

space. The façade was removed and the second floor was

flooring, Staso said, "I put concrete in. I don't have to

raised. "Aesthetically that one came out really, really nice-

worry about it."

ly," said Smith."

As an architect by training, Smith abides by the modernist design principle "form follows function," contend-

Tens of thousands of shoppers visit the store each

ing that the combination of inlaid wood pads and polished-concrete floor visually organizes the space and

DESIGN PROCESS

week. BAR's Schwing explained the polished concrete

defines patterns for walking and fixture placement. But,

Smith described a collaborative design process of small

floors work well because they are a hard-wearing, neu-

just as important, he said, the flooring is a "great back-

groups within the company, but, "it's definitely not just

tral-toned walking surface for such high-traffic locations.

ground for our clothing."

a one or two person-driven design process. I manage the

The natural oak plank inset "carpets" delineate depart-

A typical American Eagle Outfitters mall store is

process, but then we get a lot of input from our partners."

ments and visually organize the space. Walk-off mats

about 7,000 sq. ft., of which 4,000 sq. ft. is polished con-

Those partners include marketing, visual, and store op-

manage rain or snow brought in on foot from the street.

crete with 3,000 sq. ft. of real-wood inlay in the center of

erations groups.

the store.

Flagship locations require more time and more effort

The BAR Architect team presented various flooring

because of the custom detailing, but eventually design

options, such as rough wood, reclaimed lumber, and con-

elements in the flagship stores find their way into the

DESIGN HISTORY

crete. The retailer's group chose to use the polished-con-

mall stores. An "A plus" or "A double-plus" mall is likely

Between the years 2000 and 2012, beginning with their

crete flooring after prototyping it in their warehouse, said

to get the special elements. But even American Eagle

2000 all-white store design, the American Eagle brand

Staso.

Outfitter locations in the "B" malls received pol-

experimented with various combinations of wood and

While initially the aesthetic, and eventually the lower

ished-concrete flooring, because the costs tend to be low-

polished-concrete flooring, which included a 2004 and

cost, were the driving forces, the American Eagle Outfit-

er than other flooring options, especially once mainte-

2008 design. It was with the introduction of their 2012

ters Corp. also wants to be a "positive partner for the en-

nance is included in the equation.

store-which actually began in 2009-that polished con-

vironment. That is part of our brand DNA," explained

Expertly polished concrete flooring requires substan-

crete flooring became more central to design. The 2012

Smith. Both the installation and maintenance of pol-

tially reduced maintenance compared to, for example,

COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE

OCTOBER 2017

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