Today’s photographs are taken on the lower ground floor of 103-113, Regent Street, W.1, the former flagship store of outfitters, Austin Reed, which they vacated in 2011, after exactly 100 years of service.

The room, designed by P. J. Westwood and Emberton, once served as a barber’s shop, with the centrepiece being an extravagant light fixture, manufactured by Harcourts, Ltd., of Moseley Street, Birmingham.

The freehold of the building is owned by The Crown Estate, with Great Portland Estates plc holding the long leasehold, which expires in 2079.

The entire 52,800 sq. ft. of retail space is let to Superdry until 2027, although whether the British brand can sustain the rental costs associated with a Regent Street flagship until then, given the pressures on its core business, remains to be seen.

For the good of the barber’s saloon in the basement, it would certainly be preferable if the space was taken by another retailer, or even restaurateur, that could better reincorporate the stunning ‘Art Deco’ features back in to the main building.

Sadly, the period room does not lend itself to Superdry’s ‘raw industrial’ look, and is currently given over to the ‘Superdry Sport’ brand, with the space feeling like an afterthought, and most of the original features crudely covered over or obscured.

January, 2019