Our Marketing Exec, Georgie, headed into the capital to check out this season’s festive feel including fabulous spectacles at some of the world’s most prominent department stores and a whole host of seasonal window displays decorating the streets of London.
The first stop on the Christmas train was Selfridges, whose Christmas display has cooked up quite the event with all its trimmings! This year’s theme, “Season’s Feastings”, encourages customers to celebrate the power of food and the way that it brings us together during the festive period.
In order to visualise this, the Selfridges team has designed a series of playful window displays that uses food pairings and serving suggestions to capture moments of family traditions and cherished memories! The festive period means different things to different people, for some it is about lounging in your PJs all day and playing games, and for others, it is a day of dressing up and eating as much as humanly possible – whatever it may be, Selfridges has captured it in its various tongue-in-cheek displays (with my personal favourite being “Brussels a la car(te)”!).
The Christmas décor didn’t stop at the windows, it continued inside the store with several embellishments, including larger-than-life baubles and Christmas puddings, a glitzy selfie wall on the 4th floor within the “Christmas Shop”, and a revolving washing-line-inspired Christmas tree showcasing green garments – a nod to the well-known ‘Reselfridges’ campaign.
In addition, Selfridges are hosting a “Season’s Feastings Spectacular” where customers can enjoy performances from disco ball dancers and the department store’s very own Christmas choir, as well as a Christmas market at the Mews and a chance to not only meet Santa, but eat breakfast with him too! This iconic store offers an experience suitable for the whole family that will be sure to get everyone in the festive mood.
Next up, Harrods! The famous Knightsbridge address has been transformed into “The Fabulous World of Dior” and it isn’t one to be missed. This festive wonderland marks the first time the brand has taken over the store front in its entirety and they certainly didn’t hold back in the design…think gingerbread house turns haute couture!
This year’s theme is centred around a magical journey through the Maison’s history, beginning with the store’s façade which has been transformed with numerous kinetic window displays, designed to mimic gingerbread, that showcase Dior’s most popular products as well as new and exclusive items. The windows are adorned with the fashion house’s iconic motifs, including the compass rose, lucky stars, and sparkling flowers, to help guide visitors along the historic-themed displays.
Once inside, visitors can find two ephemeral gingerbread pop-ups which are an “ode to Monsieur Dior’s love of Christmas and the art of cherishing loved ones”, with one dedicated entirely to the couture fragrances. Accompanying the pop-ups is an exclusive exhibition which transports customers back to Dior’s humble beginnings and highlights the brand’s most prominent designs. Hopefully you don’t want to visit this exhibition anytime soon as it’s so popular that it’s fully booked until February 2023!
To round off Harrods x Dior’s Christmas celebrations, visitors are invited to have a rest and grab a bite in the Dior Café, designed to mimic the fairy-tale setting of Hansel and Gretel, where even the menus are designed to look like a gingerbread biscuit!
You can’t make a trip to London without visiting Liberty’s – a store that, year in, year out, goes above and beyond with its Christmas decs! The iconic Christmas Shop has opened its doors once again and, as always, is the one-stop-shop for all your Christmas needs – from lights and figurines, to baubles and gifts.
To entice customers into the Liberty’s store, the design team has cleverly incorporated the products available inside the store into their window displays by taking inspiration from the classic “12 Days Of Christmas” song to inform the design. The windows are adorned with an eclectic mix of plush characters from the song which are sat amongst store items, rustic lighting, and festive window stickers.
Once inside, in the centre of the store hangs a giant Christmas tree suspended from the ceiling which complements the painterly design of the window stickers and incorporates elements of the “12 Days Of Christmas” song to ensure continuity throughout the store. In addition, visitors are able to personalise gifts and decorations on-site whilst browsing – making their Christmas experience at Liberty’s one to remember.
Lining the streets of London are numerous festive windows from brands including Ralph Lauren with its twinkly conifer-bordered displays, Coach’s oversized mechanical nutcracker scene, Jo Malone and its snowman character, and Aspinal of London’s winters night dream, to name but a few.
Penhaligons ‘World of Wonder’ window showcases its popular concoctions in a circus-themed environment, featuring a moving helter skelter, storybook-style characters, and illuminated lettering. Continuing on the storybook theme is Barbour who has collaborated with Paddington Bear to deliver a heart-warming window display inspired by the ‘One of a Kind-ness’ film. Whereas H&M on Oxford Street opted for a sleek display consisting of white textured layers, highlighted with LED lighting, to create a contemporary snowy scene.
