Bing's Supermarket Sedalia, Mo.

In seeking to create a genuine “hometown grocer” in Sedalia, Mo., that plays up its neighboring proximity to Missouri's state fairgrounds that sit directly across the street from the store, the design for WEB & Sons Inc.'s Bing's supermarket was created using many of the architectural elements and nostalgic images that could enable customers to slow down and “smell the cotton candy.”

Given Bing's long-standing history of servicing customers in Sedalia for over 50 years, achieving a familiar hometown feel for local shoppers and fair enthusiasts alike was paramount to the concept AWG/Design and Décor Source Group was striving to achieve.

Among the many unique design elements and materials used were hand-painted custom dry-brush graphics on faux wood-plank wall covering and custom fairground murals depicting various events, in addition to signage commonly seen at fairs, and oversized produce crates with different hand-painted aged labels on the fronts. Further, an architectural element from the most well-known building on the fairgrounds was replicated and repeated throughout the space. Past historical produce company logos were also hand-painted and vintage-aged on the crate tops, all of which was capped by a matching laminate wood floor and high-contrast merchandise lighting. The wall material running horizontally and the flooring material running into the case frames further brighten the natural beauty of the fresh produce department.

Trying to recreate the fairground elements in the store, however, was not without its challenges because of budget constraints, which were overcome in part with faux brick and wood-plank wall coverings, along with routed and painted foam for the architectural molding elements.

The tight space in the deli and bakery was another concern as AWG's Design and Décor Source Group sought to conceal the working prep areas, a hurdle that was remedied by extending the space out on one end alongside a “beauty wall” that cleans up the space and makes it look more inviting to shoppers. The soffit silhouette in the deli and bakery, meanwhile, is a replica of the unmistakable and familiar fairground scenes, while copper-color pots throughout the department evoke images of a warm country kitchen.

Vintage photos of an oil painting that had been in a historic local building many years earlier provided the inspiration for the meat department wallscape, images for which capture every aspect of the fair: races, best in shows, carnival rides and a rodeo.

A highlight of the fair for many, of course, is the concession area, which was employed as a figurative muse for the dairy and frozen departments. Wood wall coverings finished with dry-brush painting created some of the weathered signage similar to that which is found throughout the fairgrounds.

“The remodel of the Bing's West location was a labor of love,” says Thomas Munson, president, WEB & Sons Inc. “The love for the community of Sedalia, which has supported us for almost 60 years, and the love of the Missouri State Fair and what it has brought to our community over the years. We used the Missouri State Fair theme in the décor of our store because the Fair has played a big part in the success of Sedalia, and the architectural design of the buildings on the fairgrounds represents the strength of the support we have had from our community.”