Patagonia Meatpacking | MNA

This Patagonia store in the Manhattan’s Meatpacking District highlights the neighborhood’s rich commercial past by incorporating historically appropriate locally sourced reclaimed and industrial materials to create a layering of time and history in a formerly “white box” space. The store is housed in a fully renovated landmark building from 1874 that was originally built as a cotton printing factory which then became a poultry, game and meat distribution house. Extensive research of historical images of the area identified architectural features used during the building’s market-related past, which were incorporated into the design. Reclaimed timber is used extensively in the store’s design.

Flooring of reclaimed, original face, natural edge long leaf Heart Pine is used throughout the sales areas. The original timbers were sourced from an Upper Eastside townhouse and a historic industrial deconstruction in Red Hook Brooklyn, as well as industrial facilities and warehouses throughout New York City. Reclaimed softwood joists were installed as ceiling beams and were sourced from deconstructed warehouse facilities underneath the Highline, a public park built on an historic freight line elevated above the streets of Manhattan’s West Side, just blocks from the Patagonia store. The newly installed ceiling beams help support a fully functioning meat rail which serves as a display system for apparel while referencing the site’s former use as a meat and poultry facility. The rail was custom manufactured by a company that specializes in meat rails for meat facilities.

Along the meat rail, genuine trolleys with customized hooks provide for flexible display throughout the store. Perimeter walls are finished in reclaimed brick salvaged from an apartment building on the outskirts of Westchester, NY. White subway tile, reminiscent of former meatpacking facilities, is used to provide a contrasting backdrop to the brand’s colorful merchandise. The main sales area is divided by four full-height custom-welded steel window frames fabricated on site with transparent wired glass. These are complemented by additional site built custom-welded steel windows with translucent Stipolite wired glass to the rear of the store. Building on-site kept materials and labor local and avoided the shipping and trucking associated with off-site manufacturing. Light fixtures in these spaces are hazardous area industrial lights manufactured in Texas.

Fitting rooms also feature custom-welded steel windows with translucent Stipolite wired glass and reclaimed corrugated steel ceilings. The fitting rooms have custom manufactured steel doors and reclaimed timber benches also made on site. Fitting room light fixtures and forged clothing hooks were custom designed and manufactured in Brooklyn, NY. Antique furniture, some with connection to food preparation such as a meatpacking platform and large butcher block tables, are used to display merchandise throughout the store and to create a lounge area near the store’s fitting rooms.