Jordan’s Furniture makes striking first impression

An unusual and dramatically-lit exterior adds to the excitement at Jordan’s Furniture’s new store in New Haven, Connecticut. It also signals to passers-by that Jordan’s is not your typical furniture store — not by a longshot.



With seven locations in New England, Jordan’s is known for its larger-than-life, mega-sized stores that combine retail with entertainment. It pulled out all the stops for its nearly 200,000-sq.-ft. New Haven outpost, devoting 20,000 sq. ft. of the space to such attractions as an elaborate indoor rope course, a water show complete with light and sound effects, a pizzeria and ice cream counter. The retail space offers more than 125 vignettes that showcase furniture in home-like settings.



EXTERIOR: Jordan’s is located in a building the formerly housed the offices of the New Haven Register and, before that, the Gant shirt factory.



The furniture retailer purchased the building, which was in need of major renovations. Its asymmetrical façade now sports an unusual grid formation of cantilevered rows lined with real chairs that have been permanently attached on the structure. This architectural feature, along with the Jordan’s logo, leaves little doubt to passers-by as to what’s inside the store.



Chris Healy, managing partner for lighting manufacturers’ representative The Healy Group, worked with Michelle Caron, lighting designer at Clair Solutions, a Pennsylvania-based company that specializes in lighting, audio and video integration solutions, to light the facade. Because of the tight space around the chairs, Caron specified a high-output fixture with a small footprint to back light the sign.



Healy recommended DynaGraze Exterior HO from Acclaim Lighting, Los Angeles, making the selection based on its size, color temperature and ELV dimming feature. The lamp, which has an LED light source and is IP66-rated for wet locations, features adjustable feet, a glare shield and robust aluminum housing for grazing applications.



The unit includes a 30-degree swivel mount and a 90-degree swivel mount option with a beam angle of 10 degrees x 60 degrees, 30 degrees x 60 degrees or 60 degrees. This allowed the fixture to be easily adjusted for use on the façade. Several color temperatures and single options were available for precise lighting.



"Michelle (Caron) had a real vision for the lighting on this project and new exactly what she wanted,” said Healy. “The team worked together to deliver a solid solution that will be enjoyed by Jordan’s Furniture customers for many years.”