Bentall Centre, Kingston
| Location | Kingston upon Thames, UK |
|---|---|
| Opening date | November 1992 |
| No. of stores and services | 75 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 1 (Bentalls) |
| Total retail floor area | 600,000 sq ft |
| No. of floors | 4 |
| Website |
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The Bentall Centre is a large shopping centre in Kingston upon Thames, London, England.
History and development
In 1987, construction began on creating a new Bentalls department store and shopping centre. This new development was to include a five level department store and a four level adjoining shopping centre including over 100 retail units.
The development took five years to complete and was built in two phases, allowing the existing department store to trade throughout the development period on a reduced footprint. The first phase, the 'new' department store opened in July 1990. The completed shopping centre was opened in November 1992 by Edward Bentall (descendant of Frank Bentall) and Nick Price from Norwich Union with a floor area of 600,000 sq ft (55,742 m2).[1]
Current operations
Stores
Below are just a few of the many stores, for a full updated list visit the Store Finder
As of January 2014 the centre contains Apple Store, Baby Gap, Clintons, Disney Store, EE, Early Learning Centre, Gap Kids, HMV, Mothercare, Starbucks and W H Smith.
Unique features
The shopping centre's atrium ceiling is higher than the nave of Westminster Abbey or the dome of St Paul's Cathedral. The original department store's façade was retained.
Another significant feature of the centre is an escalator which travels from the ground to the second floor. It is the largest single truss escalator in the world with only a top and bottom support.
When opened, a statue of Leonard Bentall by William Reid Dick was placed on the top floor looking down across the whole centre. However when Fenwick bought the department store in 2001,[2] they moved it to a secondary location as they believed it affected the sight lines into the store.
On opening, the Bentall Centre was the first shopping centre in the UK to adopt a "no smoking" policy throughout.
Gallery
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The interior of The Bentall Centre
References
- ↑ Peacock, Grenville (30 July 1993). "Obituary: Rowan Bentall". The Independent. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ↑ "Fenwick Bentalls Kingston Department Store". Retrieved 3 July 2014.