Liberty, London

We rarely see references to War and Death in retail store windows as these are such taboo subjects to include usually (and a brave retailer who does).  There have been one or two recorded throughout history although retailers tend to avoid them.  However, we were really impressed with Liberty's inclusion of images of the men who worked for Liberty and fought in World War I.  We were rather taken aback to be honest with you as these references are so rare and we all know how ruthless retailers can be although this really has given us a new found belief that there are some retailers who have risen above the perpetual commercial promotion and shown a little bit of humility.  This has given us a huge amount of respect for this brand.  Clever emotional marketing ploy or a brand that actually does care?  We'll interpret the latter we think.

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Visual Merchandising For Fashion, London

For all of you who have requested copies of our book Visual Merchandising For Fashion translated into Spanish and Portuguese, we are pleased to announce that our publishers have just published copies in both languages.  We are hoping that a Chinese version will be available at some point and we will certainly let you know where you can find copies of these versions very soon.

Also, don't forget to vote for your favourite Visual Merchandising and retailers by clicking the link here.

Diesel, London

We've ventured outside of London for the day and actually not on an aeroplane for a change and down to Bluewater shopping mall to view what is currently twitching window wise.  OK, well we found smaller versions of the usual stores which we usually include here although as its not always easy to find a Diesel store on our usual rounds we have decided to include them while we came across them.  Diesel are currently showcasing their D.N.A. Re-Evolution denim at the moment.  Essentially its the best bits from their previous ranges all rolled into one.  However, the presentation is interesting here.  Large moulded panels of the human figure fill these windows where the product is somehow attached.  It does actually look really interesting although it was possibly a nightmare to work out how to do this so well.

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Chanel, London

Chanel just looks better and better with each scheme.  After years of looking ever so shabby, someone has clearly gripped this brand by the gilt buttons and given it a bit of life again.  This is a difficult scheme to describe however beyond a kind of collage /  multiple Polaroid-type scheme.  Of course, the brands' personality is beginning to come through although we do feel that it is a few schemes away yet from matching the likes of LV, don't you think?

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Ben Sherman, London

Image and video Courtesy and Copyright Ben Sherman

We haven't looked at this brand for a while although we have remained loyal fans (honest guys) but not had much to write about them for a while.  This is a superb store along Carnaby street which has been so meticulously thought through that it really is worth a visit.  The brand have celebrated a whopping 50 years on the high street and this campaign highlights buttoning the top button which has been synonymous with the brand since 1963 and a 'deliberate style choice which exudes Britishness'.  The brand celebrate this style decision using the model Luis Simonon in their campaign (those of you of a certain age will remember the iconic band The Clash; Louis is the son of Paul Simonon).  Just watch the video below.....super cool stuff.

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Patron Silver @ Selfridges, London

Images Courtesy and Copyright Richie Hopson

OK, hands up (no pun intended) we have tried this product (Patron Silver) for ourselves and oh beejesus it really is delish although we have to say we did slightly begrudgingly share our bottle last night with friends; well we wanted it for ourselves.  We also have to confess that we do have a taste for beautiful things and this is certainly one of them.  With its agave aromas and hints of citrus it really did go down a treat.  We also particularly love the fact that the glass is recycled, hand made by artisans and individually numbered (although we cant quite see the number right now if you know what we mean).  As regular readers will know we are big fans of the windows at Selfridges but also the work of those lovely guys at Harlequin Design.  Just check out their swanky new logo below this entry or on the main page.  Delicious all round and a big old feel good factor too......are we slurrrrring?

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Tom Ford, London

This is only the second time that we've included the Tom Ford London windows.  The schemes here dont change very much, hence the lack of inclusion.  However when they do change what they do, the schemes are of course super slick, gentle and yet highlight the product perfectly.  Here we have their promotion (below) of their Alix bag.  The product naturally is incredible and here it is placed in between two illuminated radiating forms.  Beautifully simple.

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Harvey Nichols, London

Wow, wow and wow.  We saw the guys installing this scheme over a week ago but only now had the chance to include them; and what a way to start the week.  We are huge fans of what these guys do, particularly as they have such huge spaces and every time the schemes here are so completely different although we do often view gravity defying mannequins which is something that they have clearly become masters of doing.  We may show you some more of this narrative later in the week, so here's a little teaser to whet your appetites.

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Yves St. Laurent, London

We love the simplicity of this store although we do prefer the Black sleekness of their Bond st. site personally.  We couldn't quite understand this installation although it is quite like a kinetic Art piece?  Of course it is beautifully produced although is this an Art installation with quite a nice shop attached or an ordinary store with and interesting Art piece?  We haven't quite made our minds up yet.

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Watches of Switzerland, London

Images Copyright and Courtesy Melvyn Vincent

Just in case you missed it then we are including a little snapshot of the Watches of Switzerland here in the heart of it all.  Their Hitchcock flavoured scheme, in this case with the use of Magpies rather than crows, includes beautifully produced birds which have been created by the 'Makerie'.  The Magpies are positioned as if guardians of their precious finds around Black bird cages which house the product.  Isn't it wonderful to see this brand, although always there, just oozing such interest and incredibly so deliciously produced. 

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Longchamp, London

We have often wondered if anyone would pick up on the 'Love Lock' or 'Love Padlocks' theme when we first saw them on the Ponte Milvio bridge in Rome over a decade ago.  The craze of course can now be seen the world over although so many of the old bridges have begun to show signs of collapsing.  In fact in some cases there have been reports that the railings have serious deteriorated, so much so that the various authorities are now encouraging people to tie a ribbon instead of padlocks.  The name of the two lovers of course is usually inscribed on the padlock which is locked to the bridge, post or whatever is seen to be a romantic spot and the key to the lock is thrown into the river (or in some cases over the edge of the building).   Longchamp have picked up on the theme using padlock props of varying sizes so we can now tick that one off as done. Tick.

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Hermes, London

Although their store along Bond street is under going renovations (and we cant wait to see the end result), thankfully their Sloane street store is still producing their gorgeous schemes.  Here, out sized fruits in delicious colours support their fantastic product.

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Louis Vuitton, London

The delicious simplicity of these schemes is ever so slightly wonderfully painful and we are always left feeling that the installations are so seemingly easy that why is no one else working in this way?  OK, well the reality of course is that the brand here almost certainly have incredible 'production' behind them and naturally it has taken a lot of work behind the scenes to produce such incredible work.  This is the more generic scheme which has probably gone across most of the stores beyond the 'Maisons', but just so beautifully produced.

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