Hill Top Shop reopens after $150K summer renovation

The Hill Top Shop reopened Thursday in its old location opposite Café 1919 after Associated Students UCLA spent about $150,000 renovating the store this summer.

Patrick Healey, director of apparel and accessories, said he reduced the selection of school supplies to focus on only necessary items, making room for new refrigerators that offer more organic and healthy food and beverage options.

Healey said store facilities, including new fixtures and cabinetry, were in need of remodeling because the store had not been renovated since it opened in 1992.

The renovations also included new lighting and a new floor surface, Healey said. He estimated the renovations would cost less than $150,000.

UCLA Store Operations Director Robin Broudy-Johns said the store now has a more neutral and modern look with touches of blue and yellow, instead of the older vintage color scheme of teal green, pink and taupe.

She added renovations included a new register counters, as well as wood laminate on the cabinets and new signs throughout the store.

Ganeev Singh, a rising third-year biochemistry and psychobiology student, said he has been to the store a few times and never noticed a need for renovations.

Namita Anand, a rising second-year business economics student, said she thinks it was a good idea if it was for maintenance purposes but she doesn’t expect the changes to make a difference in sales.

“Students don’t particularly care about anything except what they’re buying,” she said.

Healey said sales were about 65 percent of what they were last summer while the store was in Bruin Café’s location over the summer. He added he hopes to see them increase following the store’s reopening.

The Hill Top Shop brought in about $1.325 million last financial year and is expected to bring in $1.394 million during the 2015-2016 financial year after the renovations, according to the association’s budget report.