In recent decades, franchises have taken over the optometry services and optical sales market. This trend has spawned a commodity-type approach to design of office and retail sales space.
Dr. Matthew Barber bucked this trend when he dropped his affiliation with an optical franchise and struck out on his own. Barber coupled this independent streak with an innovative design by Ibañez Shaw Architecture for his new office and retail business, Chroma, in Fort Worth, Texas.
The most striking differentiator contradicts a common design approach that uses stock design millwork display fixtures with backs to the storefront. This scheme often blocks daylight with posters and ad displays in windows.
Chroma, instead, inverted the conventional doc-in-the-box form to display a stylish collection of frames to the exterior. The design features a glass box extending from the mass of the building that holds displays of eyeglass frames. Daylight floods this space, illuminating a flowing display of fixtures, and penetrates the interior. A Chroma-branded line of frames are presented in backlit cubes embedded in a concrete wall. At night, these displays are lit with distinctive brand colors. From the outside, the illuminated structure resembles a sculpture protected by a glass case.
The design’s visual impact draws in patrons from the new “Dickies Arena,” a 14,000-seat multipurpose venue, across the street. The experience of the space and its bold image viewed from the exterior has become a core element of the brand. People often enter Chroma to get a better look at the space and end up purchasing new glasses. The design appears to be yielding bottom-line dividends—Chroma opened in March 2020 as the pandemic set in, and sales are up 30% from the pre-pandemic franchise practice despite the COVID-19 headwind.
Owner: Dr. Matthew Barber
Design architect: Ibanez Shaw Architecture
Architect of record: Ibanez Shaw Architecture
MEP engineer: BHB Engineers
Structural engineer: HnH Engineering
General contractor/construction manager: Steele Freeman
Related Stories
Projects | Sep 13, 2017
A new platform offers a solution to construction cost overruns
Rider Levett Bucknall’s Pulse takes project management deeper into financial analysis and forecasting.
Projects | Apr 17, 2017
BD+C's 2017 Design Innovation Report
Façades that would make Dr. Seuss smile, living walls, and exterior wall space that doubles as gallery space are all represented in this year's BD+C Design Innovation Report.
Projects | Jan 25, 2017
Trump prioritizes infrastructure projects, as rebuilding America is now a hot political potato
Both parties are talking about $1 trillion in spending over the next decade. How projects will be funded, though, remains unresolved.
Projects | Jul 29, 2016
From Construction Site to Court Room: How project management is transforming expert witness teams
Applying goal-oriented methodologies and techniques can increase efficiency and reduce costs associated with litigation.
Projects | Aug 21, 2015
Panama Canal expansion nearing completion
An April 2016 opening is scheduled, which will allow bigger-capacity ships to traverse between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
Mixed-Use | Jul 22, 2015
Despite China's 'ghost cities,' the country continues construction boom
Cities continue to spring up in the heart of China. Designed to accommodate millions, many are still nearly empty.
Sponsored | Cladding and Facade Systems | Mar 24, 2015
Designers turn a struggling mall into a hub of learning and recreation
Architects help Nashville government transform a struggling mall into a new community space.
Museums | Mar 5, 2015
A giant, silver loop in Dubai will house the Museum of the Future
The Sheikh of Dubai hopes the $136 million museum will serve as an incubator for ideas and real designs—a global destination for inventors and entrepreneurs.
Cultural Facilities | Feb 25, 2015
Edmonton considering 'freezeway' to embrace winter
If the new Edmonton Freezeway is constructed, residents will have an 11-km course that winds through the city and allows them to skate to work, school, and other city activities.
Mixed-Use | Feb 11, 2015
Developer plans to turn Eero Saarinen's Bell Labs HQ into New Urbanist town center
Designed by Eero Saarinen in the late 1950s, the two-million-sf, steel-and-glass building was one of the best-funded and successful corporate research laboratories in the world.