The Great Indoors
by Erinn Morgan

Uptown Eyecare in Monticello, Minn., has a unique streetscape which brings the great outdoors inside

Taking in this suburban dispensary is a walk in the park. It has trees providing shade over benches. There are also street lamps and a cobblestone street. A fountain is topped with a copper pineapple from which water flows.

Sound like an outdoor optical shop? Elaine Happ, OD, owner of Uptown Eyecare in Monticello, Minn., has created a unique streetscape for her practice—which is located entirely inside a 5,000-square-foot space.

The recently renovated dispensary is the brainchild of Happ and designer Larry Funston of Oadbe Associates, Ltd., of Ontario, Canada.

"I wanted it to look like you're outside at the uptown art fair in Minneapolis," says Happ, whose practice is located 40 minutes northwest of the city.

While creating this environment indoors was an expensive investment, she says the payoff is the positive customer response. "The reaction of patients is so fun," she says. "One woman came in and looked around, looked up and put her arms up in the air as if to embrace the place. She said she walked in and knew right away that this was the place she wanted to get her glasses."

SETTING THE SCENE

Utilizing existing design features and running with them, Happ worked with Funston to set a just-right dispensary atmosphere.

"There was a florist in here before us and they had used some pavers to create a unique effect for the flooring," says Happ. "We wanted to keep this element and expand upon it in the new design, so we used more pavers for the dispensary section. It gives it a cobblestone street effect."

Additional touches helped develop a city street environment. They included four faux trees that reach up into the ductwork on the ceiling.

Throughout the shop, walls and frame display sections feature exposed brick (in this case, sheetrock that is faux painted) to add to the effect. Happ came up with an
inventive way to display frames in her first dispensary space that also followed the art walk theme.

"I came up with the idea when I should have been sleeping," she says. "I bought up all these old, unattractive pictures at flea markets and garage sales—we put new backing on them and ordered frame bars from a company to put inside the frames. It really helped it look like an art gallery, and we wanted to incorporate that idea into the new store. We hung them from the street lamps we have on the floor on the different arms."

The street lamps also feature mirrors conveniently placed for customers to check out what they are trying on.

Frames are all merchandised by brand because they find that more people are coming in and asking for products by brand.

"We do more merchandising of sections and men's, women's, and kid's frames are mixed together," says Happ.

The entire dispensary area is well-lit with accent lighting. Because the building features an open ceiling (the ductwork is exposed), Happ had triangle-shaped steel frames suspended from the ceiling to mount the lights.

"They had to suspend a grate from ceiling and put a triangle over every one of the street lights," she says. "The rest of the office has drop ceilings, so we were OK there."

In addition to the dispensary space, Uptown Eyecare features a large business office, oversized curved reception desk, four exam rooms, two private doctor's offices, and a break room for the staff. There is also a spiral staircase leading up to a second level.

Uptown Eyecare grew dramatically when the practice moved. The original practice space, opened in1997, was only 1,700 square feet. Today, with two doctors and 15 staff members, 5,000 square feet is appreciated.

This practice, undoubtedly, has a unique formula for success, including the new dispensary design.

"It just exceeds my expectations," says Happ. "I did an eye exam on a 27-year-old man who has been a patient of mine for a long time. He said 'Your new place is awesome!' I'm really happy because the design really appeals to both men and women."

Quick Tips:

At Uptown Eyecare, a consistent color palette helps set the tone. Many items, including the staircase, are painted with the office's main accent color, purple. "It's really an eggplant tone," says Happ. "In our old place, the accent color was purple. I wanted it to be the same. All the exam room doors and countertops are purple."

internal design

It's not just the furnishings, trees, and charming park benches that create the ambience of Uptown Eyecare in Monticello, Minn. Owner Elaine Happ, OD, makes a point of appreciating the other ingredient for success at this practice—the staff.

Happ says that she believes in building employee relationships that last. "This Friday, we are renting limos and taking the entire staff down to the Mall of America for a day—we are giving them each $100 to spend and we have plans for lunch at The Rainforest Café," she says.

In addition, every so often Happ will decide that it is "Rose Day" at the office. "I show up with a dozen roses for each staff member and they really love it. They all work so hard and they are really important to our practice."