Strand Arcade

When The Strand opened in 1892, it was the fifth and last of the arcades built in Victorian Sydney. Today, it is the only one remaining in its original form.

When English architect, John Spencer unveiled his plans for the arcade in the mid-1880s he received a standing ovation. The plans were ambitious. The arcade was to be 340 feet long, and three stories high, running between Pitt and George Streets. Magnificent cedar staircases at each end of the arcade led to the second and third floor galleries which were linked by a central bridge.

The arcade was one of the first Victorian buildings in Sydney designed to take into account the harsh Australian climate. The roof was to be made of glass, specially tinted to reduce glare, and the access gallery of the top floor was projected to shade the lower levels.

Spencer's plans were elegant. Delicate ironworks brackets to support the galleries and the railings, finely carved cedar balustrades and shopfronts, marble columns and richly tiled floor. The lighting was especially innovative, a combined gas and electric system was used in combination fittings designed by the architect, some of which still exist; the concourse was lit by two huge central chandeliers suspended from the crown of the roof trusses and having 50 gas jets and 50 electric lamps in each. There were also two Victorian state-of-the-art hydraulic lifts.

In the early period of its construction, the Arcade was referred to as the 'City Arcade' and sometimes known as 'Arcade Street'. In 1891, it was finally named after the famous London street that links the City of London and the City of Westminster. The Strand was London's smartest theatre, hotel and shopping street in the early 1900's.

When it opened on April Fools Day 1892 the Strand Arcade was regarded as the very latest in shopping centre designs and was described as: "The finest public thoroughfare in the Australian colonies."

One-hundrend-and-eighteen years, two depressions, two World Wars and two major fires later, it still stands, a little out of place, in the heart of modern Sydney's CBD.

As Sydney grew around the arcade, it changed very little inside and soon became a refuge from increasingly crowded, noisy streets.

The early 1900s are remembered by people who travelled to the city from the suburbs by tram especially to see the electric lights in the Strand Arcade – one of the first places in the city to be lit by electricity. It was browsers paradise. Shops crammed onto the ground floor included stamp and book specialists, milliners and jewellers working in the windows of their shops, because there was nowhere else to sit. For twenty years it was a thriving, friendly place, a haven in the heart of Sydney.

An "indiscretion" in the Wentworth Hotel between a "lady in a low cut dress" and a "slightly drunk" party-goer swung the Strand Arcade into the 20s. The details of the incident are sketchy but it led to an unceremonious eviction from the hotel of Sydney jeweller and well known man-about-town, Percy Stewart Dawson and a new racier image for the Strand. Dawson vowed he would never be thrown out of a nightclub again. To guarantee that he decided to build his own: The brightest and the best night spot Sydney has ever seen. He chose the basement of the Strand Arcade for the venue of his club, The Ambassadors Café. The club housed a large, extravagantly decorated ballroom which seated 700, and a small Palm Court used mainly for luncheons and afternoon tea dances.

The twenties roared as much in Sydney and the Strand Arcade as they did around the world. The shops were busy and the dance club attracted fashionable and colourful people.

The depression brought everything back down to earth in the early thirties. One regular visitor to the Strand, Barbera Preece, remembered the spirit of friendliness and resourcefulness in the arcade that lasted throughout the war.

The Nut Shop, which still operates today, opened in 1939. The owner was Karl Mendels who had recently arrived in Australia after fleeing Europe with his young family to escape Nazi persecution. Mr Mendels rationed his popular sugared almonds during the war years. "The shop would only open for a few hours in the afternoon and we would sell a quarter of a pound to each customer, unless they were in uniform, then they were allowed to buy half a pound," according to his son Paul, who still runs the family business.

Most of the action in the Strand during the fifties seemed to take place in the basement. The scene was Chequers Night Club, owned by the infamous Wong family who lent a touch of the Orient to the arcade and came complete with a fierce six foot tall Chinese manageress. Chequers was the fashionable place to eat, drink, be merry and enjoy the spectacle provided by Sydney's racing fraternity and a handful of flashy dancing girls. An interesting mixture after midnight.

Since the war and during the fifties the arcade has become quite run down. In 1974 it was given an "A" classification by the National trust and bought by the Prudential who begun restoration work. However, at 3.00am on the morning of May the 25th 1976, a fire broke out. Twelve fire crews fought the blaze for hours but the arcade was left in ruins.

The painstaking process of rebuilding and restoration began again until, in 1977 it was ready for a fashion parade. Against the Victorian backdrop, models, dressed in the latest 70s fashions, paraded to the delight of shoppers and guests. The show was spectacular: harem pants, smocks, dirndl dresses and scarves, cowboy shirts, lots of stripes and spots and "fuschia, fuschia, fuschia." The future of the arcade was looking rosy.

In 1992, the Strand Arcade celebrated its 100th birthday. Careful restoration, expertise, and a little spit and polish, meant the arcade could look forward to its next 100 years as a recognized and respected part of Australia's heritage. The best parts of the arcade have been kept and restored – its atmosphere and air of being a special place are enhanced by the old-fashioned fixtures and fittings. The cedar shopfronts and stairs, tiled floor, glass roof, delicate ironwork and marble pillars.

The Strand Arcade remains a majestic beauty in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Sydney's CBD. Many retailers including The Nut Shop, Elie's leather Repair, John Azzi Hair and Strand Hatters have traded for decades, becoming well known Sydney institutions.  Today the centre is a unique mix of Australian designer fashion and specialty stores catering for a discerning, sophisticated clientele.