In two heritage-listed buildings in the Eixample district next to Arc de Triomf, where the city’s textile warehouses and fabric stores used to be located, the adaptation of the premises consisting of ground floor and basement has been carried out to unify and renovate them as the new retail fabric stores 'Julián López' is opening in the city.

The two entrances from different streets lead to a connection of spaces with a height of up to 4.5m, which are erected as large receptacles of various fabric specialties. In one of the entrances we find one of the most emblematic sections within the Julián López stores which is fashion fabrics, a prelude to ‘the most beautiful fabrics in the world’.

From the beginning, our approach was a return to the origins with large, open and neutral spaces which evoke the industrial character of the old fabric warehouses: recovery of the exposed structure of cast iron and rivet pillars, and metal beams and joists with brick vaults, recovery of the continuous concrete pavement characteristic of the time, and walls ready to receive the furniture that is to define each space. Furniture designed in wood and metal, which accommodates the display and storage of all the fabrics in the premises.

Serving as the lit-up background for the interior spaces, there is a majestic metal and wooden staircase connected to a patio, that along with a zenithal skylight and the central till, form the backbone that organizes the corridors and enables vertical circulation that was non-existent prior to the extension of one of the basements; an extension that was developed by supporting the five floors of one of the buildings to carry out a large structural hollowing out, creating a new space that now accommodates the haberdashery. In this new space you will find all kinds of small items such as threads and pins, which stand out in a vibrancy of endless colors contained in wooden furniture, on a new wooden floor that offers warmth in contrast with the sobriety of the new concrete envelope.

The installations, arranged in the exposed ceilings, allow a uniform conditioning of all spaces, thus supporting the initial aim to be flexible regarding potential section exchanges in the future. 

Location: Eixample, Barcelona

Year: 2017-2019

Surface: 2.057 m²

Architecture: COMA Arquitectura

Interior design: Juanjo Puig, disseny d’espais

Photography: José Hevia

Developer: Julián López – Fabric distribution.