Hermes, London

We're not always huge fans of what the Hermes store along Bond street do in their windows, although this scheme is enormous fun.  With their back to basics, utilitarian scheme, ya' know keeping it real an' all that, we have to admit that it did bring a smile to our faces.  Scrubbing brushes, Belfast sinks, pots and pans, clothes dryers and so on couldn't be further from the clientele that this brand probably attracts, however here it is.  The humour is wonderfully fun and a breathe of fresh air from this luxury brand.

B Store, London

Tucked in right at the end of Saville Row (near Issey Miyake) B store is a rather an elusive store.  Its odd shaped space shoe horned underneath a much larger building, this brand seems to completely work away quietly just doing what its doing - selling product.  There is something quite unusual about this brand although beyond the window scheme we are not sure what it is.  The presentation is always so beautifully produced and cleverly thought through.  Here, we have a vintage piece of furniture filled with what looks like plaster and cut horizontally into three pieces.  Ties have been draped across the top.  There is an almost 'fine art' approach to what these guys do and we are very intrigued.  If you happen to be this end of Saville row or half way down Conduit street maybe take a look and let us know what this brand is all about?

Asprey, London

If you haven't seen this latest installation at Asprey along Bond street, then you really are missing out on a wow factor.  This scheme is quite stunning.  In collaboration with students at the Royal College of Art and Central St. Martins College of Art and Design (you may have seen the article in this months Vogue Magazine) "The students are bringing wit, originality and imagination to the street in a way that London does better than anywhere else in the world." "The window display initiative will run from May 9 to May 15 on Bond Street, Conduit Street and Grafton Street in Mayfair, and also on Fulham Road in Chelsea." 

This scheme was quite difficult to capture in a photograph so we would advise swinging by Bond street to experience it for yourself - stunning.

Liberty, London

Who else would put a Pink Gorilla costume in their windows?  only Liberty..!  What enormous fun..!  These guys really do 'get it' and get it by the bucket load.  With head dresses that Carmen Miranda would envy, suspended Bananas, bales of hay, market stall style writing on the fenestration, this is one very confident retailer.  The wit and humour of the team here at Liberty oozes out of their windows.  The merchandise remains as desirable as ever and if this doesn't bring a smile to your face, seek professional help.  We are huge fans of what these guys do and they really are leading the way through 2011 on every level.  Could someone take the multiple high street brands down to Liberty and make them pay homage to these windows? And lets hope some of the creativity from the guys here somehow transfers by osmosis.

The Gap, London

We know what you're thinking...........yep............every expense spared.

Lladro, London

This kind of product is really quite difficult to present in such large windows, however, we have to admit these guys have done an incredible job just by simply focusing our attention on these pieces with the use of simulated spilling paint.  What a fun concept.  We will check back and keep an eye on these guys as they have been producing such great schemes recently and we cant wait to see what they do next. 

Belstaff, London

We are really growing to like what this brand does more and more.  Here we have the Union flag, within which we have a kind of collage of images that make up the whole.  Of course, it is a remnant from the Royal Wedding last week (we guess?) however its great to see a brand in London, that's not British getting into the mood of it all.  We keep meaning to swing by and take a closer look at the merchandise in this store but time just keeps running away with us.  Maybe this is an opportunity for retailers to consider people like ourselves that just don't have the time very often to spend browsing and purchasing around their sites and to consider what they can do about it? What do you think?

Moschino, London

Have you ever put anything into 'Wingdings' or 'Webdings' into microsoft word documents?  If you type anything into a document in these fonts, symbols appear as your text.  We're not quite sure why this font is even available or what the use of it is?  Well, anyway, the reason we mention this is because it was the first thing that sprang into our minds when we saw these land-of-the-giants tape measures in this scheme at Moschino.  In the mean time we were also chatting to a Bulgarian Graphic designer the other day with whom we discussed what he called 'the gypsy' influence currently in Sofia (his words not ours), however we can begin to see some connections and with a much wider perspective or broader view (or possibly a google earth view)  bring the strands together of what is happening in this scheme.  Whether we are hitting what these guys are trying to communicate is one thing and how their intention is being read is quite another however, this is an interesting scheme none-the-less and they do what they do very well.

Ralph Lauren, London

We love the new scheme at Ralph Lauren at the moment.  They seem to have had a bit of shake up and reassessment of where they were going and this is a completely refreshing change.  The additional (possibly new lighting - hopefully LED?) has made a massive difference to this presentation which of course is always so beautifully dressed and every detail thoroughly thought though to perfection.  If you happen to be on Bond street do go and have a look.  While this entry is genuinely meant, it will also hopefully prevent the Head of Visual Merchandising at this store punching me in the arm next time I see him.....;o)

Alexander McQueen, London

If you are lucky enough to be in New York today, then you can do no better than to go and see this exhibition.  "The [McQueen] exhibition will run from May 4 to July 31 and takes a look back over two decades of McQueen's work, beginning with his graduate collection from Central St Martins College of Art, right through to his final collection which was shown in the weeks after his death". "The museum has also borrowed a significant number of outfits from Isabella Blow's personal collection, which were all bought by Daphne Guinness earlier this year, as well as highlights from McQueen's tenure at Givenchy". 

To see this collection is an opportunity of a life time.  We cant be there, so please be our eyes and ears.  (Oh, and a copy of the book would be nice too if you have the chance)

Mango, London

If we hadn't included the company name above this entry, would you have recognised this brand?  The answer is invariably No.  How exciting, eh?  Finally we can walk along the high street and while most of the mid-range brands look identikit and without the brand name above the store, we quite honestly wouldn't know where we were, Mango is at least one of the brands thriving on the differentiation.  How refreshing.  This scheme (or rather just one window) reminds us very much of two things - Jessie J's Price Tag video "its not about the money, money, money, we dont need your money, money money, we just wanna make the world dance........"  or alternatively the work of Hans Bellmar, Death, Desire and the Doll (although without the death).  Of course this scheme is rather more tame than the work of Bellmar whose installations speared right to the core, the forbidden areas of the human psyche.  Bellmar once said, 'I want to reveal scandalously the interior that will always remain hidden and sensed behind the successive layers or the human structure and its last unknowns'.  He also felt that religion was his great enemy and that the UK and the USA were too puritanical for his work although the root of the problem was that it was difficult to distinguish his work between erotic art and pornography.  Naturally the scheme here is neither of them however it is yet another link to Surrealism that we have seen on the high street, particularly in light of the recent scheme at Tiffany.  Having been a professing surrealist from the 1930's, a keen activist, living in poverty Bellmar also collaborated with such greats as Ernst and Cocteau and his work is now seen as intellectual art as much as eroticism.  Still, whether we make these links or whether they in fact exist (or not), it is at least fascinating to see such an incredible leap forward from this brand. Lets just see who follows, eh?...... In the meantime " Ain't about the (ha) Cha-Ching Cha-Ching. Aint about the (yeah) Ba-Bling Ba-Bling. Wanna make the world dance, Forget about the Price Tag".

Louis Vuitton, London

We love the creativity of Louis Vuitton at the moment and we are always ready to capture their latest installations as they always do everything not just so incredibly beautifully, but also with such wonderful humour.  Repetition of these waving Queens all in a line rightly take their place below their main scheme here at their Maison on Bond street.  I have a feeling that given the opportunity beyond their regular schemes and beyond the necessity to maintain the brand schedule, they would have produced something quite spectacular.  Still, we have the nod in reference to last Friday's event and it brought a smile to our faces and that's perfectly cool too.   

Benetton, London

We were rather surprised to see this scheme at Benetton this week.  Surprised, only because this is quite a departure from their normal-type schemes although actually quite refreshing to view.  Finally we have a scheme from this brand that is just a little more exciting, a bit of movement and a nudge forward.  We're not sure they are experienced enough at this stage to handle mannequins like this as they are rather placed independently of each other as if the figures have either won a Gold medal or taking part in a form of synchronised swimming.  Still, thankfully, it is a move forward, and while we wont be having a street party to celebrate it, it is a least something different to look at and finally we may actually visually have a mid-range brand that we can enter into and know which one we are in.