Prague’s Kotva department store to undergo two-year renovation

Prague’s Kotva department store is due to close on Thursday for a two-year reconstruction. Following the overhaul, the building will accommodate luxury shops and offices. The area surrounding Kotva will also undergo a major transformation.

The seven-storey Brutalist building, which stands on the corner of Náměstí Republiky square and Revoluční Street, was one of the first such outlets in the city and its opening was a major event in 1975.

It was designed by the husband and wife team of architects Vladimir and Věra Machonin, who were also behind the Hotel Thermal in Karlovy Vary and the Czechoslovak Embassy in then East Berlin.