From the very beginning of Petrovka Street, the five-story corner building with a wavy cornice and a tall attic, adorned with an elegant grille and large display windows, is clearly visible. This house became one of the first Moscow buildings in the Art Nouveau style.

In 1902, architect Emmanuel Matveyevich Rosen built it on the site of an old building at the request of Alexandra Stepanovna Gracheva, who owned this plot. In the luxurious corner rooms on the first and second floors was the famous clothing store "Jacques," which was mentioned in early century guidebooks alongside "Muir and Meriliz." The store was named after its owner, Yakov Ivanovich Steiner, known in Bohemia as Jacques Steiner. He was a man of his time: one of the first cyclists in Moscow, an avid motorist, a member of the Moscow Automobile Society, and its treasurer. In announcements for collecting membership fees, the address of the "Jacques" store on Petrovka, in Gracheva's house, was often indicated, which was sold in 1905 to the insurance company "Anchor."

This building also housed the "Marseille" hotel, furnished rooms "Nobles," and one of the first cinemas in Moscow, "Thaumotograph," with a hall for 60 seats. Several photo studios operated in different rooms of the house: Romanovsky, Eikhenvald, and "Paolo" Svishchev.

The backstory of this place is also interesting. Before the reconstruction, there was the "England" hotel, which had a complicated reputation, where General Skobelev passed away suddenly. A monument to him was later erected nearby.

In Soviet times, the "Jacques" store was replaced by "Shilkotrest" and "Sindshveiprom," which also sold clothing. Next to the "England" hotel, in the old building, was the famous haberdashery store "City of Hamburg."

Today, active trade continues in this house: in the former display windows of "Jacques," clothing and shoes are alternately exhibited.