Fendi, Dubai

Although we never buy anything here, this brand just gets better and better.  Within the Mall of Dubai in the area known locally as the 'Drum', Fendi shines like a beacon of hope for creativity.  This oozes the super cool luxe-meets-street which they seem to be getter better and better at doing and we just love it.

Bloomingdales, Dubai

How cool is this promotion?  Right at the front of the store we have Blommingdales' giant Neon Bag promotion.  This leads into a space for the 'little Neon Bags' for us to buy and in addition to this a little shop dedicated to this product.  In store, this space is so incredibly exciting, perfectly lit and at every turn there is another exciting presentation that, in fact we've just realised that we've spent hours here - job wonderfully done.

Bloomingdales, Dubai

While its freezing cold back in Europe right now, we're sizzling hot here in Dubai.  How cool, eh?  Post jet-lag we've already been out and about to see whats happening in the Malls around town and we've already spotted some key schemes to share with you.  Here at Bloomingdales, and absolutely on trend they're presenting us with their Neon Nights scheme.  We adore the elongated mannequins they've used here and their sweet wrapper head dresses.  The wiring of the mannequins is a little hit and miss but that aside, we love what we see.

On the Streets, Amsterdam

There is nothing better than scouring the cities for their Antiques, Boutiques and markets for those delicious finds.  We were looking for something special for one of our clients through the alley ways and over the canals in search of beautiful things.  Gorgeous original early 20th century lighting stores, vintage furniture and all sorts of interesting bits can be found all over Amsterdam so naturally we were drawn into the light here to take a closer look.  We're sadly leaving this beautiful city, but by complete contrast we will be warming up like lizards on a rock and showing you some of the latest schemes from the Emirates and the Dubai malls in our next entries.  Bring on the desert sunshine...!

DeBrillemaeker, Amsterdam

We have no idea how to pronounce the name of this store here?  But anyway, while we weren't on the hunt for a new pair of spectacular spectacles we were quite amused by their scheme here.  Pairs of reading glasses placed in large jars of coloured liquid - bizarre, eh?  Oh those mad Dutch people.  We do however really quite like this idea as these kinds of stores, with the exception of a few 'out there' always look so dull,  so this was quite a refreshing find.  The liquid was beginning, however, to look a little like your fish tank would if you didn't clean it for a few weeks, so we would suggest maybe changing the liquid every so often before they find little Goldie, Bubbles or Skipper doing the side crawl at the top? 

Options, Amsterdam

We love home ware stuff, so it was a particular pleasure to come across this store just off the Dam.  Options sells all those things that you never knew you needed until you saw them here, plus a few extra bits.  There are slight references to Anthropologie here with the multiple legged table created from recycled/upcycled furniture bits, however they have made it their own here by adding what looks like a Lemon Curd topping.  Incidentally, they have a cool Cafe attached to this store but they only take cards not cash.  The reason?  'They don't know why, they just do'.  Guess they don't want to handle your grubby little Euro notes in their posh shop? 

Pepe, Amsterdam

Andy knew Pepe?.....hmmm.....we're not quite sure he did actually Pepe.  But anyway, we were drawn in to have a look at the windows here as, while they don't photograph very well and appear quite chaotic, they do in fact work rather well.  Yes, we have the usual references to POP ART that crop up tirelessly, although fine Art references are very much on trend right now - although not necessarily this particular movement.  Anyway, its a bit of fun and they are trying, so 10/10 for having a go, we guess?

Mexx, Amsterdam

This brand seems to have died a death back in the UK, although it clearly is making at least some cash here in the Netherlands.  We were never offended by what 'they' do here but, really, how many of these mid-range brands can we expect to see on an already saturated high street?  Anyway, with their fun scheme, Mexx are at least 'special' here in Amsterdam.

De Bijenkorf, Amsterdam

Probably one of the largest stores and by far spending the most on their Visual Merchandising in Amsterdam is De Bijenkorf.  This department store is of course just like any other with the usual luxury and high street brands that one can view anywhere else in the world.  OK, and, well the scheme is a little bit 'budget' for what we expect from a flagship store, so think Debenhams rather than Harvey Niks although they are trying and they do actually look rather good nonetheless.

On the Streets, Amsterdam



All of this week we will be looking at including some of the delights of Amsterdam for you.  In this gorgeous city of canals we've been searching and scouring to find some of the hidden gems to share with you...soooo....just watch this space.

Alexander McQueen, London

With the delicious schemes at McQueen, how would this not make anyone want to go in and drool over the merchandise?  Of course the merchandise itself is, as we all know is just stunning and we can only aspire to own a piece of it.  We always comment that this is such a difficult space to work in particularly with its illuminated glass flooring although it is a great sized space.  With their free standing lace-like background dripping with quality yet another scheme is screaming wonderfully from the high street.

Proportion>London, London

With retail trends constantly evolving and the prevailing fashion taste ever changing, it can be a daunting task for today’s Visual Designer to keep abreast of the latest looks and respond with the most appropriate mannequin styles.  Proportion>london make this challenge a thing of the past, with their newly launched collection SERIES: envisaged to be the VM mannequin solution of the future.

SERIES is a benchmark concept, a “workhorse” collection created in a collaborative process between proportion’s sales and design team. Working in unison, they identified a checklist of fundamental VM requirements: a core range of must-have poses, choice of a number of definitive head styles, consummate body shape that carries clothing well and the ability to customise options easily for today’s progressive fashion brands. Sculpted in a carefully honed style, the aesthetic continues seamlessly through both male and female collections.

The female SERIES collection will be on show at the proportion>london three open days starting 17th April.  Give these guys a call or check them out online at www.proportionlondon.com

Lanvin, Paris

OMFVM gawd help us.  We're not sure where Lanvin are going with their schemes for a long while now.  London is no better.  The price point of the product is of course as one would expect from a Luxe brand, but is this communicated through their windows?  OK, well, one ingredient we are missing enormously from store windows 'out there' is a massive dose of humour, the likes of which we could only view pre-corporate global VM schemes when everything was about window display.  Thankfully we have the likes of Harvey Niks, Selfridges, Barneys and Bergdorfs to keep us amused and clever humour at that.  However, we just don't 'get this'?