Selfridges opens its Christmas shop

Selfridges has become the first department store in the world to launch its Christmas shop this year. The London store opened 3,000 square feet of festive magic on Monday, August 3, 143 shopping days before Christmas, as the retailer aims to capitalise on its strong summer tourist trade.

The retailer’s Christmas shop is opening in two phases, the first this week with almost 3,000 square feet, and the second in the autumn that will double the space to more than 6,000 square feet. The reason for the early opening is to tap into demand from overseas travellers looking to buy festive souvenirs from their trip to London.

Occupying the retailer’s fourth floor, the space has been decorated with more than a thousand decorations to showcase the Selfridges 2015 Christmas theme, Journey to the Stars, its most unconventional festive scheme taking its creative cue from the timeless and symbolic Christmas star. The retailer states that its theme will “playfully explore the confines where spirituality, mysticism and even magic meet through the imaginative study of constellations”.

Geraldine James, Selfridges Christmas home and decorations buyer, said: “Despite the summer weather, we’re in full festive mode here at Selfridges. We’ve been working on this year’s Christmas Shop since Christmas last year. We have so many customers visiting from all over the world and eager to snap up festive souvenirs on their summer holidays, which they can’t buy at home. So, we have to make sure we’re ready to showcase Christmas decorations they will truly treasure.”

James added: “We also have a large number of domestic customers who love to Christmas shop very early in the year to ensure they can take their pick of the very best selection available, whilst all collections and product are available.

“We’ve been opening the doors to our Christmas Shop during the summer for years now and have become a real destination for those fans of Christmas and festive decorations within and outside the UK. Some of these customers return to us year after year, excited at the prospect of discovering the new collections.”