New retail path as Country Road arrives

MAJOR Australian retailer Country Road launched a regional Victorian flagship store in Ballarat last week.

The heritage State Savings Bank building on the corner of Sturt and Camp streets, most recently an office space, has been transformed into a contemporary clothing and homewares shop.

Employing 19 local staff members, the store officially opened to the public on Friday morning, attracting about 1000 people within the first three hours.

“The community has been so excited to have a Country Road store,” said PR and partnerships coordinator Natasha Zouriakas.

“We really want to make sure we’re involving locals, not taking away from locals. Always having a local focus in terms of staffing is important.

“We also want to keep in touch with the community and offer support to community events and initiatives.”

Architectural work has been done by Ballarat’s Mick Moloney, and the shop’s design and fit-out has a six-star sustainability rating with the Green Building Council of Australia.

It has environmentally conscious features including tables made from recycled yoghurt containers, rugs woven from recycled materials, and change room hooks made from ocean plastics.

“The interior was designed to act as a bridge between the existing classical and brutalist architectural styles, celebrating the coming together of old and new,” a statement from Country Road said.

“Around the store you’ll find benchtops that incorporate damaged Country Road mugs, and parquetry floors made using Australian-grown timber off-cuts.”

The store is accessible to people of all abilities and has details including adjustable fitting room hooks for customers in wheelchairs.