From American gas station to DIY temple: 100 years of Servei Estació

At the intersection of Passeig de Gràcia and Aragó, in the 1920s, a huge sign announces Service Station José ManzanaresAll around, advertisements for the car brands Firestone and Petrol promise speed and progress in a Barcelona still moved by trams, carriages, and an archaic open-air railway that runs along Aragó Street. Cars are few and far between, but they already exist. In fact, at this point in the city, many are seen. Workers attend to them: they fill up their cars, check their oil, and clean their windows. Meanwhile, the drivers make a coffee nearby. No one knows it then, but this American-inspired experiment—the first service station in the entire state—will eventually become one of Barcelona's most emblematic businesses: Servei Estació.

One hundred years later, that pioneering gas station has mutated. On the same site at 270 Carrer Aragó, today stands a DIY and materials store almost unique in Europe. Servei Estació occupies nine floors, has more than one hundred employees, and stores nearly 60,000 items ranging from snails to methacrylates, foams, and corks. "We are a company closely linked to the roots of Barcelona, ​​with a vocation for service and offering solutions," explains Javier Morral, the establishment's general manager, in statements toCompanies"We've always distinguished ourselves by advising our clients and ensuring we have everything we need," he continues.

The former service station has become a vertical DIY universe where installers, fine arts students, interior designers, and families looking to make changes to their homes coexist. Everything can be cut, customized, or transformed: from a sheet of foam to a piece of wood or laser-engraved acrylic. "We are a point of reference in Barcelona because there are few stores like ours in the world that offer this assortment and maintain our philosophy," says Morral. A century old, Servei Estació defends a model that seems almost impossible in the age of digital commerce: proximity, knowledge, and specialization. "We have been fighting the pressures of the real estate market and multinationals for a hundred years," Morral summarizes. "And we are still here, innovating and looking forward, as Barcelona has always done," he explains with satisfaction.

From diesel to DIY

The history of Servei Estació begins in 1924 when businessman José Manzanares Baró and lawyer Lluís Marimon Carbonell founded the company Service Station de Barcelona. Inspired by the model of modern American gas stations, they wanted to offer all possible automotive services at a time when the combustion engine was still a rarity on the city's streets. Four years later, in 1928, the project took shape on Passeig de Gràcia and Aragó Streets, on the site of the Le Palais Automobile garage. The model, unprecedented until then, was immediately successful: in 1930, after a very positive balance, the company opened new branches in Lleida, Girona, and Palma.

However, the Civil War hit the business hard, and the gas station was collectivized by the CNT. After the conflict, the Franco regime forced it to Castilianize its name. The lack of fuel and the restriction on motorized traffic forced the company to seek a new way to survive. The hardware store served as a buffer. In the midst of the hardship, Servei Estació became a place where all kinds of materials were found: from bicycles, rubber, and latex to plastics and nylons.

The old premises became too small, and in 1962 the gas station was demolished to make way for the current building. Since then, the company has continued to evolve without moving from its current location. "We once had up to five stores spread across Catalonia, but since the crisis, we've now concentrated our operations in Barcelona and Girona, where we also have a 2,000-square-meter store," Morral acknowledges.

The establishment is now a hundred years old. "We're in our fourth generation, and we continue with the same vocation as always: helping, offering solutions, and adding value," he says. The future of Servei Estació, Morral explains, involves connecting with the middle class, young people, and small businesses by providing them with innovation, maintenance, and customized services at affordable prices.