The Traveling Wheelchair

101 Independence Mall Way #d117
Kingston, MA 02364
Phone: 781-422-2239
http://www.hollisterco.com/

After finding wheelchair access very limited at the Hollister Co. at Silver City Galleria, I headed to Hollister Co. at Independence Mall in Kingston to see if their store has better wheelchair access; I was very disappointed to find this Hollister Co. at Independence Mall is identical to the one at Silver City Galleria. I really wanted to buy my good friend Douglas a shirt from Hollister Co. for Christmas because he loves their style of clothing.

Hollister Co. is an American store owned by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. Most of the Hollister Co. stores, including this one are NOT very wheelchair friendly or accessible; due to the steps at the main entrance; an unmarked segregated accessible door; a cluttered interior with little to no room to maneuver my chair; and a cashier counter that is too high for me to reach.

It really amazes me that Hollister Co. is allowed to rent retail space in malls that was once equally accessible and turns it into an inaccessible store by placing steps at the entrance. I’ve been told it is Hollister Co.’s “signature style of construction to include steps to a porch-like entrance”. I guess Hollister Co. and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. must think steps are cool :-( Most other businesses are removing barriers, not creating barriers!

The front entrance of this Hollister Co. also has steps leading to a sitting area. There is an accessible side door but you may miss seeing it because it is NOT marked as wheelchair accessible; if you get close enough you will see a small automatic push button door opener with a small engraved wheelchair access symbol on it next to the door.

I pushed the automatic button and the door opened right up. Kevin pushed my manual chair inside. Once inside this Hollister Co. I again found myself surrounded by clutter that blocks access; Once again I saw two small steps leading to the front sitting area. This sitting area is NOT accessible from inside the store or from the main entrance.

I found I could NOT access most of the clothing in this store; yet I did find the main aisle a little wider and more accessible than the Hollister Co. at Silver City Galleria. All the displays of clothes are cluttered on tables or hangers throughout the store with little to no space to maneuver my chair; all the aisles along the side walls are way too narrow to fit my chair; Kevin my friend had to keep moving things for me to gain access. No sales person offered to help at this Hollister Co.! Once again, I found it a very humiliating and embarrassing shopping experience.

We looked at the dressing rooms and discovered there is one larger dressing room that appears to be wheelchair accessible; yet it is not marked as accessible and the door was locked so we couldn’t see if there are safety rails or a lower clothing hook inside. The lighting inside this Hollister Co. is very dark for a person with a visual impairment to be able to see. The cashier counter is way too high for a person in a wheelchair to reach; it is approximately 4 feet tall; and the ATM/Debit/Credit Card Transaction machine is impossible to reach from my wheelchair because it is set back on this high cashier counter.

As we were leaving, I found I could not reach the push button door opener to open the door in this Hollister because of all the items blocking my access to it; Kevin once again had to squeeze in between the cluttered displays to push it for me. I was relieved once I was back in the open mall space.

I give Hollister Co. at Independence Mall ONE STAR for wheelchair accessibility. I found it another humiliating shopping experience at a Hollister Co. In order to earn the other Four Stars they would need to remove the steps they placed at the front entrance so all persons have equal and full access; place an accessible sign by the only accessible side door; make the sitting area accessible to all; place more space between the displays of clothing so a person in a wheelchair can fully access all items for sale; lower the cashier counter to a wheelchair accessible height; place the ATM/Debit/Credit Card/ Transaction Machine within accessible reach; remove the clutter in front of the accessible door so a person in a wheelchair can reach the push button to open the door to exit; and increase the lighting so a person with a visual impairment can see the clothing and price tag.