PОСТ (Rost) in Surgut
Car engines and construction machines keep running around the clock. No starter motor can defy the cold in wintry Surgut. The city is located in the north of the West Siberian lowlands. The inhabitants of Surgut drive or fly the 1,200 kilometres to their large neighbouring city, Omsk. However, the 300,000 or so inhabitants have their reasons for living in permafrost conditions. Surgut is founded on the oil industry; jobs are secure, wages are high and living costs are lower than in Moscow.
Up until recently, people living in Surgut had few opportunities to spend their money locally. The new Agora Mall has permanently changed the shopping landscape of the city and inside, the Rost chain together with Wanzl has opened a new chapter of Surgut supermarket history. Alongside the standard products that can also be found in the existing convenience shops, Rost – the name means growth – also offers a wide range of fresh and high-priced products. This include delicatessens, a wide variety of near-food items, service counters with an extensive selection of sausages, meat and cheeses, an excellent assortment of bread and baked goods and a comprehensive choice of fruit and vegetables. A counter selling draft beer and a café complete the services on offer. Rost imbues the whole
with an exclusive atmosphere that can easily compete with the large cities in western Russia. Experts from Wanzl Russia built the supermarket in Surgut on the river Ob – 2,900 kilometres from Moscow. The design and planning were also undertaken by Wanzl Russia. It is characterised by wide aisles, pleasant clarity, organic shapes and the harmonious integration of essential static construction elements. These posed a serious challenge for the internal architects: the building was not only supported by an above-average number of columns, but the structural design also required lengthways, transverse and additional struts. In the construction phase this resembled a steel forest, but using colour and some cladding the Moscow architects toned down the visual impact and optimally integrated it into the walkways. Incidentally, the supermarket also reflects the corporate colours of POCT.
The architects also came up with something unique for the shelving: as well as the classic wire tech system, the high rack system was used for impulse purchase islands. Using glass shelves and wooden edging panels, the planners were able to create areas on the wire tech uprights for additional presentations – for example, non-food products matched to food products.
