Case Study: Liberty of London

So far 2020 has been a tough year emotionally, economically and financially. The fallout has been catastrophic for certain business sectors, with the retail sector being one. Due to the lockdown there’s been a huge surge in online shopping, so yet again the high street has been dealt a blow, and this has been particularly true for the traditional department store.

The question now is, will the combination of a recession, social distancing and compulsory face masks be a knockout blow, or can the department store bounce back?

In our modern fast-paced world department stores may seem a little outdated. Once the height of fashion and convenience because everything was under one roof, they’ve been usurped by internet shopping, available 24-hours a day and done from the comfort of your sofa. Almost everything can be found online and most probably at a discounted price. Of course we all love a bargain, and in these financially challenging times more so than ever, but can staring at a screen, scrolling through endless images and clicking a button, replace the thrill of physically going shopping?

Just off Regent Street in the heart of London’s West End is Liberty of London. Dating back to 1875, this shopping emporium is a business steeped in history. Housed in a mock Tudor building, Liberty is one of the most iconic department stores in the world and mecca to both Londoners and tourists alike.

This isn’t an ordinary department store. Its history and age make for a very different shopping experience. The six floors of Liberty are meant to feel like a very spacious home with the building divided into small intimate rooms with fireplaces and wooden panelling. These rooms are all impeccably styled thus making the shop a delight for the senses, and I must confess I often wander around the store for creative inspiration.

Liberty has always been synonymous with the Arts & Craft movement of the late 1900s, but it has evolved from these origins into a modern, exquisitely curated store. At Liberty you will find everything from the latest fashions and cutting edge beauty products to luxurious home furnishings and exotic carpets. There’s also a hair salon, a barbers, several beauty treatment rooms, a restaurant and an in-house florist. It’s all there, under one very beautiful roof. Liberty is where you’ll find the unusual, the stylish, the quirky, the expensive.

Liberty is probably most famous for its floral printed fabrics which have always been at the heart of the business. However in a bid to move with the times the store often collaborates with different brands and designers to create limited edition products for its London store using these famous fabrics.

Liberty has collaborated with everyone from Hermés, Marc Jacobs and Manolo Blahnik, to the more unlikely choices of Nike, Hello Kitty and Crocs! Liberty fabric is all-inclusive. It is for everyone from the sewing enthusiasts to the retired surgeon who makes his own Liberty print shirts just to keep his hands agile - a charming anecdote I stumbled across whilst chatting to a shop assistant in the haberdashery department! A story which for me sums up so succinctly why Liberty is such a unique store.

Everyone has their Christmas traditions and for so many a shopping trip to Liberty is part of the run up to Christmas. Nothing sparkles quite like Christmas at Liberty. The windows, the central atrium and the fourth floor are all transformed into a Christmas dream filled with decorations, cards, wrapping paper and the piece de resistance - a Harrow & Green Liberty print Christmas sack and matching Christmas stocking! We were so thrilled to collaborate with Liberty to create a limited-edition sack and stocking using their signature Christmas fabric - it was definitely a highlight of the year.

Another modern Christmas must-have is the beauty advent calendar. Liberty was the first shop to launch a beauty Christmas advent calendar and theirs is without question the best. The advent calendar is made up of twenty five little drawers housed in a box covered in a Liberty print design. All the drawers contain the latest cult beauty products, and whilst it must be said that this advent calendar isn’t cheap, its price far subceeds the value of the contents. Consequently it has become Liberty’s fastest selling product to date and is a sell out every year, with customers queueing around the block on the launch date.

Liberty has like all other department stores, embraced online shopping with an excellent digital presence. On their website all the usual customer services apply; free delivery, gift wrapping and a rewards programme. However, call me old fashioned but nothing can replace a trip to the actual store itself. Liberty is a destination, an experience and a luxury that I for one missed during lockdown.

So often, as I wander around Liberty, inevitably, something beautiful catches my eye and before you can say ‘Do you have those in a size 38?’ I’m skipping around the store in 4-inch stiletto heels that would make a drag queen wince! I’ve finally found that pair of shoes that will make my life complete, that is of course until the next time!

Tanya Taylor17 July 2020Comment