Several years ago, a longtime partner referred Warner’s Stellian to our team when they were thinking about remodeling their Falcon Heights store. It was a complex project, and we wound up sending the client to first work with one of our architecture partners. When the plans were complete, we were thrilled to help them step into their vision!
The space: The main building structure was the original Warner’s Stellian store, which had been gone through several additions as the company expanded over the years. Believe it or not, this store remained open throughout this extensive remodel.
Our work: To contain the mess, we split the store into 4 bays, starting and completing one section before moving onto the next. We did our best to keep the store workable despite the construction, adding plastic-poly curtain walls to keep the work zone separate from the rest of the store. We also worked to contain the demolition to early mornings when the store was a little quieter, and kept the dust controlled with HEPA units and ongoing on-site cleaning.
With extensive communication between our project manager and the corporate team, we were able to work around their promotional schedules to ensure there wasn’t extra construction activity happening on days where more customers would be in the store.
An extra challenge: As part of the project, the store also went completely paperless and wireless. To help make this successful, we added hubs throughout, which act as workstations for queuing orders, meeting with customers, coordinating payments and more.
The results: Going into the remodel, the Warner’s Stellian team expected a drop in their sales numbers, simply due to the percentage of the store that was unusable during construction. Not only did we help them create a delightful new flagship store, they never actually experienced a drop in their numbers, which speaks to our intentional efforts to keep the store highly functional despite the on-site construction.
What we love about the space: the demo kitchen and design center. Warner’s Stellian hosts quite a few events at their store, and the demo kitchen is set up with gorgeous appliances, a comfortable seating area, and a camera system (similar to a cooking show) where guest chefs can host classes while people around the store watch on monitors. It’s very cool!
Our team has gone on to complete construction on a new store for Warners’ Stellian in Minneapolis, a complete remodel of the Edina store, and minor remodeling work at a couple other stores and their corporate offices.