Planning

Above: How the two shopping centre’s would fit together. Below: a model of the whole development

Norco House

An internal view of Norco pre-partnership, 1987

Norco House was a popular department store in Aberdeen city centre, based in a rectangular building comprised of a ground and three upper floors. Each floor was divided into three rooms. It offered a good open interior space, and was already extremely well suited to the Partnership’s shop fitting. The design of the building was controversial, and the Partnership felt that the building and Aberdeen (not called the ‘granite city’ for nothing!) could do with some sprucing up. Thus, Norco House was selected to become John Lewis Aberdeen.

Norco House enjoyed a solid stream of customers, but the proposed opening of the Bon Accord Shopping Centre (see below) was expected to boost numbers dramatically. In fact, plans were in the pipeline for a direct bridge linking the shopping centre and the new branch of the Partnership.

Bon Accord Shopping Centre

St Nicholas Shopping Centre opened in 1985, and by 1986 was already proving extremely popular. But there were plans in the pipeline for a bigger, younger brother. Bon Accord was set to extend the area of covered shopping, by linking together with St Nicholas to form one giant centre. John Lewis Aberdeen would sit alongside this proposed development.