Sezam – Warsaw’s iconic department store

The “Sezam” Co-operative Department Store was one of a group of buildings on the Eastern Wall of Marszałkowska Street in Warsaw. It was erected in 1969, closing the establishment from the side of Świętokrzyska Street. The iconic building, designed by a team of architects Andrzej Sierakowski, Tadeusz Błażejewski and Romuald Widera, was demolished in 2014.

“Sezam” was built with cooperative funds. It belonged to the WSS “Społem” Śródmieście. Engineer Jan Kopciowski was responsible for the construction of the building. It was opened on 11 October 1969. The building had storefronts only on the ground floor and curtain walls made of corrugated aluminium sheeting. “Sezam” was equipped with a very modern ventilation system. An escalator was used for the convenience of customers. There was a system of underground corridors through which goods were transported to the basement of the building. It sold industrial and household goods, as well as groceries in a large self-service section. It also housed a café and a 476 m² fast-food bar. The café terrace was located on the first floor in the northern part of the building (facing Swietokrzyska Street).

1969. Above the door the inscription ‘Sesame Open’ can be seen. Source: NAC – National Digital Archive

“Sezam” was the largest cooperative department store in Warsaw. In 1973 it employed around 300 workers. In 1992, using the premises and terrace of the café, premises were built for the first McDonald’s chain restaurant in Poland. The former Minister of Labour and Social Policy Jacek Kuroń attended the opening ceremony. The building presented a depressing picture in its final years. Decrepit, repeatedly rebuilt and neglected, “Sezam” was no longer what it had been decades ago. It did not fit in with the centre of the metropolis, so the decision was taken to demolish it. 10 August 2014 was the last day of operation for the department store, and the McDonald’s restaurant closed soon afterwards. The neon signs from the demolished building were donated to the Neon Museum.

1969 and the same site today. Source: NAC – National Digital Archive and Bogdan JS, Licence: CC-BY 4.0

“Sesame” in 2010 and the “Marszałkowska Centre” office building today. Photo credit: bonczek_hydroforgroup and Adrian Grycuk, CC BY-SA 3.0 PL, via Wikimedia Commons

In its place, a new 14-storey building was erected to revitalise the corner of Marszałkowska and Świętokrzyska and, more importantly, to add to its metropolitan prestige, just as “Sezam” had once added to it. The “Marszałkowska Centre” office building was built between 2016 and 2018 and was designed by the Juvenes Projekt architectural office from Warsaw. In June 2018, the “Sezam” shop was opened in the basement, in a way to continue the commercial tradition of the site and to remind us of the history of the iconic department stores’ that used to stand here.

Source: cargocollective.com, tubylotustalo.pl

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