CATHEDRAL SHOP

Involving careful restoration and construction work, the new shop for Canterbury Cathedral incorporates a new pedestrian link between the cathedral precincts and Burgate, one of the city’s busiest shopping streets, making it now more readily accessible to shoppers. The interior of the shop has been re-branded and a new merchandising system designed to take advantage of this prime retail location and an increasingly diverse product range. Displays now include products such as audio visual books, prints and maps, cards, stationery and packaging, clothing and accessories, ornaments, toiletries, toys, games and coins. The walkway through the centre of the shop to the historic centre of Canterbury has been designed to cope with traffic of up to 1.5 million people a year. Due to the deep floor plan of the shop affecting the light, the design centres on a fully glazed pavilion to the entrance from The Precincts with a patent-glazed roof link to allow natural light into the interior and also to provide glimpses of the cathedral’s Bell Harry Tower beyond. To complement the ambience, interior finishes have been kept light and natural, with beech being used throughout the shop to add a sense of lightness and warmth. During conversion, a temporary ramp was provided to take people from the level of The Precincts to that of Burgate. In addition, conversion work on the existing building involved complex and extensive restoration to roofs, the rear wall, the basement retaining wall, and the Burgate frontage, which all proved to be in poor condition. The restoration of the building, which dates from between 1720 and 1750, included fine panelling and fireplaces on the first floor gallery.