State Department Store

45, Svetlanskaya Street

State Department Store For Women and Children

Constructed in 1911 by V. P. Babintsev, the second building of the present-day State Department Stores is indicative of art deco. Its architects accepted the technological challenges and possibilities of the time, making wide use of new building materials such as concrete, reinforced concrete, steel, and glass. The building used to belong to the I. Ya. Churin and Co. Trading House. Established already in 1867, this firm expanded to Vladivostok from other cities in Siberia, opened offices in Moscow and Irkutsk, and supported representatives in Russian cities such as Chita, Sretensk, and Odessa. The founders of the company--Churin, V. P. Babintsev, N. P. Babintsev, and A. B. Kasyanov--conducted commercial transactions with international companies, including in France.

After the Revolution the building was used as a department store, a geological museum, and the offices of Dalrybsbyt (a fishery company). Since 1959 the original building, along with a later addition, has been used as the State Department Store for Women and Children.

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