Shop and retail fit-out in Geneva
Planning building work? Apartment, house or building renovation, a new storey or a roof extension, running the project is our job.
HMG Construction Management SA runs the fit-out of your shop or retail unit in Geneva, from the empty premises to opening day. The firm draws up the plans, files the permit application as an agent registered on the Geneva MPQ list (mandataires professionnellement qualifiés, the cantonal register of qualified building professionals), prices the works, appoints the contractors and keeps the schedule on course for the opening date.
How do you get your shop fit-out done without the worry? By handing the management and the coordination of the contractors to HMG. HMG is there for you.
Where do you start when fitting out a shop in Geneva?
Start with the premises. Before any furniture is drawn, you need to know what the unit can offer. The available electrical capacity, the ventilation, the water supply and drainage, the ceiling height, the condition of the shopfront and the access for deliveries decide what is feasible and what will be costly.
The lease matters as much as the building. It usually states what the landlord hands over, what the tenant fits out at their own expense and what has to be reinstated when the tenancy ends. HMG goes through these points with you before pricing, then obtains the written consent of the owner or of the property manager (régie) for any works that affect the building.
Which permit does a shop need?
In Geneva, permits are issued by the Office des autorisations de construire (OAC), the cantonal building permit office. According to the official page on permit types (in French), the fast-track procedure, called APA, covers interior changes to an existing building and works that leave its general appearance unchanged. An interior fit-out usually falls within that scope. A new shopfront or any work on the facade alters the look of the building, so it is checked separately and needs a full application, called DD (demande définitive), if the project falls outside the APA.
Where the unit changes activity, for instance an office that becomes a shop, the question should be settled before the lease is signed. Our page on building conversion and change of use explains how. The file is then submitted online on the AC-Démat platform. In an older building, the asbestos, PCB and lead check described by the Canton on its page Rénover, transformer ou démolir sans danger comes before any stripping out.
Who do you call first?
There are two routes to opening day, and the right one depends on what you already have.
- You have neither drawings nor a designer yet. HMG then takes on the whole project, from the plans and the permit application to the handover of a unit ready to be stocked.
- Your architect, your interior designer or your brand's shopfitter has already designed the project. Once the permit is granted, HMG takes over to price the works, appoint the contractors and manage the site alongside them.
In both cases, a single point of contact answers to you for the opening date and the budget.
How HMG manages your shop fit-out
A closed shop sells nothing, and the rent keeps running during the works. The schedule is therefore built backwards from the opening date. HMG first identifies the items with a long lead time, such as bespoke furniture, the shopfront, the signage or certain appliances, and orders them early enough that they never hold up the site.
The firm writes a specification by trade, invites several contractors to bid on the same basis and gives you an item by item comparison. On site, it coordinates the electrician, the ventilation installer, the plasterer, the shopfitting joiner, the floor layer and the painter, chairs the site meeting, writes its minutes and checks every invoice against the signed bid before passing it to you. Noisy works are placed within the hours the building allows, and deliveries are agreed with the neighbours and the property manager.
Usual steps and timing
- Visit of the premises, survey of the existing services and review of the lease.
- Layout plans, cost estimate and consent of the owner.
- Permit application where the project requires one.
- Tenders, comparison of bids and ordering of long lead items.
- Works, in the order strip-out, services, partitions and ceilings, finishes, then furniture and lighting.
- Acceptance, snagging, handover of the unit and final account.
The overall duration depends mainly on the permit and on the manufacturing time of the furniture. HMG gives you a dated schedule after the first visit and tells you at once about anything that could move the opening.
Shops and retail units delivered under HMG's management
Frequently asked questions
Can the opening date of a shop be guaranteed?
Nobody controls how long the authorities take. Everything that depends on the site, however, can be planned. HMG writes each contractor's dates into the contracts, orders bespoke items early and tracks progress every week, so that the announced date rests on written commitments.
Do I need a permit to change the shopfront?
A shopfront is part of the facade. Replacing it can alter the general appearance of the building, which goes beyond a simple interior fit-out. HMG checks the applicable procedure against the Canton's permit types page before anything is ordered.
How much does a shop fit-out cost in Geneva?
The price depends on the floor area, the condition of the unit at handover, the services that have to be installed and the level of finish of the furniture. Once the premises have been visited, HMG prices each trade, then settles the budget with you when the contractors' bids are in.
Can the shop stay open during the works?
It can for a partial refurbishment. The site is then split into zones, with temporary dust screens and work carried out outside opening hours. For a complete refit, a short, well-prepared closure is often preferable to works that drag on.
Related guides and pages
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