Selfridges is boasting about becoming the first department store in the world to unveil its annual Christmas windows display – more than two months before the big day itself.
Launched today, the windows follow a “With Love From…” theme and will be on display in all of its stores, not just its world-famous Oxford Street flagship in London.
The stores will also be fitted out with interior decorations, featuring 85,000 Christmas baubles, over 65,000 pieces of confetti, and 200 Christmas trees.
The London store will unveil a second selection of Christmas windows at the end of November, marking the first time in Selfridges’ history that the store’s festive window displays are launched in two stages.
The unveiling of the November windows will coincide with the reveal of the second part of the retailer’s accessories hall on Duke Street, poised to become the largest luxury accessories destination in the world when the space is completed in spring next year.
Selfridges said it took a multi-specialist team of nearly 500 to produce this year’s scheme over the past 12 months, and over 100 people to put together the windows, working non-stop rotated shifts for the past eight days.
“We love to pull out all our creative stops and come up with Christmas displays, from our windows to our in-store decorations, which not only capture the spirit of Christmas but also the spirit of Selfridges with its bias to surprise and its unique sense of fun,” Selfridges head of windows Hannah Emslie said.
“This year our ‘With Love From’ theme is also celebrating the spirit of London, Birmingham and Manchester where Selfridges has its stores. But beyond this, we want to present a picture of people coming together at Christmas in the name of love, and taking part in a party where everyone is invited, regardless of where they come from.”
The Selfridges Oxford Street windows tell the story of a Christmas parade, complete with festive floats decorated in Christmas embellishments reminiscent of the spirit of London’s most famous parades and carnivals.
Meanwhile, the decorations and designs of the windows in Selfridges’ Manchester and Birmingham will have a strong focus on their respective cities.
Selfridges will also put on a programme of Christmas events, which includes visits from Santa Claus and confetti cannon moments, to coincide with its Christmas shopping season.
