St. Nicholas Centre Refresh

Client:
Land Securities

Location:
Aberdeen

Budget:
£1.5M

Status:
Complete

Awarded Commendation BCSC Gold Awards 2009

The Bon Accord and St Nicholas Centres create a covered pedestrian link between Union Street and George Street, combined they create the main retail destination within Aberdeen city. Appointed by Landsec though invited competition to undertake a ‘refresh’ scheme for the St Nicholas Centre our design places the Centre as the younger, ‘cooler’ brother of the Bon Accord Centre.

The concept for the refresh scheme is taken from geological formations and the use of light to create a space that is inviting, fresh and contemporary; encouraging shoppers to increase their dwell time within the centre. Customers are enticed into the centre from Union Street via a crisp clean back lit white box with ‘st nicholas’ simply applied in a sophisticated and understated manner in a black font.

The theme of light continues internally with a double ribbon of light which flows down the length of the mall eventually terminating at an external white light box at the Schoolhill entrance. The ribbon of light is punctuated with accent lighting which will rise at the centre of the mall to express the increased ceiling height. This central area will provides an opportunity for the placement of LED screens and the creation of the main dwell space defined by the distinctive birch timber slatted “wave” The wave hides some stunted beams and the slatting direction perpendicular to the linear ceiling grid visually slows down the pace to the dwell area. The timber adds a warmth and texture; a complement to the white simplicity of the Barrisol light boxes and bulkheads.
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The ‘ribbon of light’ and ‘light boxes’ are conceived as highly crafted pure elements within the design linking all aspects of design both externally and internally in a holistic approach.

The flooring is created using various textures and sizes of sand colour ceramic tiles which move away from the rigorous geometric patterns that dominate many shopping centres. The centre is punctuated by geologically inspired extrusions of pilasters clad in thin strips of ceramic tile that give the impression of the build up of geological layers. The pilasters are lit with accent lighting to add atmosphere and emphasise these features.

Simple clean lines with a restricted palette of materials and contemporary detailing are used throughout to create a calm and relaxed retail environment.