Paris

This week before flying across the pond to the Big Apple to view their Christmas offering, we've decided to peruse the delights of the Parisian Retail schemes and have a look at what our friends across the channel are doing.  We have found some gorgeous bits here and made some videos too which, while a little naive at least hopefully will help the schemes come alive a little.  Anyway, just watch this space. 

Hermes, London

This scheme at Hermes really did stop us in our tracks.  How incredible?  We are absolutely stunned at this amazingly bold move and absolutely thank them for leading the way in producing such an exciting scheme which, we have to say, does make the surrounding luxe brands pale by comparison.  We have passed by this store along Bond street a few times during installation as there appeared to be a bit of a teaser going on but haven't had the time to stop until now.  This made us stop.  We are truly wowed.  Job superbly done.

Mappin and Webb, London

We are literally squeezing in all of the the amazing schemes happening in London right now as there is so much happening around town.  If you happen to be at the end of Bond Street where it meets Piccadilly then do swing by and check out these gorgeous little beauties at Mappin and Webb.   These guys have literally risen visually like Phoenix out of the retail ashes which followed after the global recession and it really is refreshing to see them looking so bold and confident.  We love these props here which really are exquisitely produced and of course so deftly handled.

Burberry, London

We have had so many entries to include recently that it has taken us forever to get around to include this brand.  Well, visually this brand have exploded this year back onto the visual scene and almost every scheme has been incredibly produced and extremely exciting to view.  This is an interesting scheme too which really could have gone so badly wrong but it seems these guys have pulled it off again.  There is the minor point of course that if we don't wear gloves while installing shiny stuff then finger prints do get everywhere and are very difficult to spot with tired eyes after an installation.  We were a little distracted by lots of them, but anyway, we're sure they will be around with the cleaner in the morning.

Ermenegildo Zegna, London

We are growing to like what this brand do with their presentation more and more right now.  We adored their installation in the Harrods windows around the corner from this store in Knightsbridge recently which absolutely oozed the best bits of their Italian background.  Anyway, here we have a series of sleighs stacked in what appears to be a Christmas tree-like format.  OK, well its not stopping the traffic on Sloane street but its is simple and does what it does very well.

Iris, Bangalore, India

Images Courtesy and Copyright Restore Solutions.

We do feel privileged that so many people from around the world send us images of their latest projects and we do try and include everyone when we can.  Far away from a very cold London the Indian brand Restore solutions have worked their magic on the Iris store, Bangalore, bringing the festival of light to life in this beautifully clean space.  Great to see some exciting bits happening all over the globe and not just here in the West.  Thank you guys for sharing your images. 

Desigual, London

This is a fun little window at Desigual.  You can view this also on our YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjJVZ3x7ep0

Calvin Klein, London

We have been drawn  into this brand over the year as there have been some very interesting schemes happening and this installation captures exactly the mood of London right now.  Frosty and freezing.  There's not much more to say about this although we cant wait to see the fantastic CK store in NYC in a few weeks' time as they always produce such extraordinary installations in conjunction with artists and designers which is just up our street.

J Crew, London

For those of you who remember C&A then you will know exactly where we are coming from.  We've seen this brand in the US and it actually looked really more than ordinary.  The launch of this store here in the heart of it all of course looked very interesting and they have actually produced a couple of interesting window schemes from their run of several (well these two at least).  However, do have a look inside and wonder to yourself.  Wonder we hear you ask?  Well, yes,  where is the visual merchandising?  How are we being enticed?  This is a massive space which no doubt has cost rather a lot of 'bucks' but how boring and generic does it have to be?  In the words of Jack Cohen (Tesco founder), 'Pile 'em high, sell 'em cheap'....well in this case a much higher price point for quite generic merchandise.  With shoes costing in some cases over £500, bits of Barbour chucked in and a sprinkling of cashmere sweaters presented in a Benetton kind of way we couldn't be less impressed.  Dull, dull, dull.

Prada, London

This was quite a difficult scheme to capture because of the bright lighting here, however, at least hopefully you are able so get some kind of view of what these guys have produced.  Big old printed luggage.  We quite like this one actually.  Do you?

Selfridges, London. Guest Post by Jodie Oram

Everyone of course looks forward to Selfridges Christmas windows and yet again this years scheme makes for a real visual treat, as well as creating a sense of fairytale enchantment. The windows have an overall theme of over sized products next to miniature worlds creating a real contradiction between the two. Featuring a giant YSL clutch bag and a Charlotte Olympia shoe they really put the focus back on the gift for Christmas. The detail that has gone into these snowscapes is, as always, extraordinary such as a tiny Father Christmas climbing up a giant Givenchy trainer and one attempting to scale up the tassel of a giant bag.  This infused with the movement of props from a rotating play-doh tub to the gentle beat of Dre headphones is very impressive, creating interactivity and entertainment to the masses of people flocking to see the windows.  One of the windows also features a gingerbread version of London’s cityscape created by food pioneers Bompas and Parr with even a Lyle's golden syrup frozen lake. Selfridges itself has also been turned into a miniature world in a snow globe which we found particularly enchanting.

jodieoram@outlook.com

Esprit, London

We've noticed a lot of, well what appears to be a little nod to sustainability here at Esprit for a while now.  The use of layers of cardboard seems to be their 'thing' at the moment which is extremely simple and yet so effective.  We love the use of the word here too particularly at this time of year; very understated and thank goodness no bling in sight.

Harvey Nichols, London

If you want or need to know how to 'do' Christmas then do swing by the incredible Harvey Nichols here in the centre of it all.  If you remember last years incredible scheme (which the brand so kindly allowed us to use an image from for the front cover of our book due out on 2nd January) then you may be wondering how on earth have they managed to better it?  Well, either get yourself over to Knightsbridge and take a look or just have a look at our video and decide for yourself. ......http://youtu.be/Z2Xu_GUmSlk