JCDecaux UK Building: Art Deco Heritage Reimagined

Built in 1936 to designs by architect F. E. Simpkins for Currys Ltd, the JCDecaux UK building is a striking survivor from the celebrated Art Deco architecture that once defined the Great West Road. Its story reflects the changing life of west London: during the early 1940s it was requisitioned by the Ministry of Aircraft Production, supporting the neighbouring Alltools site in the manufacture of aircraft components for the war effort.

After the war, Currys did not return, and the building found a new use with Paton & Baldwins, spinners and knitting yarn manufacturers, who occupied it until the late 1960s. Over the following decades it passed through a number of different hands, including a period as a BMW showroom.

By the 1990s, however, the building had fallen vacant and into disrepair. Its full frontage was hidden behind advertising hoardings when Jean-François Decaux first spotted it while travelling from Heathrow Airport into central London – a fitting discovery given that the site would later become the UK headquarters of one of the world’s leading outdoor advertising companies.

In 1994, the building was recognised by Historic England with Grade II listed status, acknowledging both its own historic significance and its important group value with neighbouring listed buildings – a rare, complete survival of the architectural style that made the Great West Road famous.

JCDecaux acquired the site in 1997 and immediately appointed Foster + Partners to undertake a full renovation. The project was ambitious and carefully considered, reflecting Jean-François Decaux’s passion for design and his commitment to giving the building a new future while respecting its historic character.

The restoration had three main elements: the refurbishment of the Art Deco building forming the street frontage; the creation of a new storage warehouse; and the addition of a vaulted internal “street” with a glazed canopy, providing a dramatic exhibition and circulation space at the heart of the site.

Led by senior architect Kate Murphy, with the new frontage and atrium believed to have been designed by Lord Foster himself, the scheme is a compelling example of sympathetic restoration: preserving the building’s Art Deco presence while introducing elegant contemporary interventions that allow it to continue working for a modern organisation.

Today, the building serves as JCDecaux UK’s Head Office and operational hub for the south. For Open House Festival visitors, it offers a rare opportunity to step inside a landmark of Great West Road heritage and see how careful design has brought an important listed building back to life.