Window displays in London symbolise so many things at Christmas time. So much more than simple displays of merch, retailers in London pull in vast crowds for weeks during November and December and captivise them with magical and fantastical displays. Window design teams like retail design solutions are commissioned to produce the best window dressings to stop passers by in their tracks; making the window a tourist destination in itself.
Here are my top 5 windows to visit in London at Christmas. See you there?
1. Hamleys toy store, London
My goodness do I have a love affair with Hamleys. I am a sucker for a toy shop, and Hamleys is the world’s most famous. As you may expect, Hamleys go all out on their window display at Christmas, so you can expect nutcracker, ballerinas, magicians, cuddly characters, talking toys, flying reindeers, dancing elves. You imagine it, Hamleys have probably done it! Hamleys window displays are all about captivating the hearts and minds of children, and as you might expect, the windows at the world’s most famous toy store are all about the fun.
2. Harrods London Christmas window displays
There’s no getting away from the fact that Harrods have their Christmas windows absolutely dressed to perfection every single year. Harrods spare no expense to delight visitors as they stand in awe of such Christmassy beauty!
Perhaps the most famous of Christmas windows, the displays at this iconic store become a destination in themselves during the Christmas season, pulling out all the no-expense-spared stops.
Culture trip
3. Selfridges Christmas window display
One year, Selfridges’ transformed 12 of their windows into sparkling, fantastical reprosentations of the 12 star signs and it reportedly took 500 staff and 450 metres of lighting, 10K laser-cut leaves and two tons of glitter 32K hours to finish! That is some incredible dedication to the Christmas cause.
4. Harvey Nichols
Luxury retailer, Harvey Nichols, though a little smaller than it’s neighbours, puts on an absolute cracker of a Christmas window display every single year. Without fail you can expect to be wowed, and it’s worth a trip into London just to see what they have planned for this year – I can’t wait!
5. Liberty Christmas Windows
Liberty is included in my roundup because they take a different approach to many other of the London department stores. Liberty tend to include their most iconic products in their window displays, and I’m here for it. I love to see the displays at Liberty, especially when they have live models or are putting on some kind of performances. One year Liberty commissioned a grafiti artist to spray paint the building whilst passers by watched in amazement!
Liberty London is defying the old age tradition of displaying a typical fir Christmas tree and has instead chosen to decorate and display a floating velvet bonsai, complete with real reindeer moss.
Hanging in the centre of this iconic building, the bonsai has been decorated with large baubles and gifts, as well as the odd exotic animal. Its charm is owed to a poem by Gabrielle Djanogly, ‘The Tree of Liberty’, and its magnificence to its colours, materials, detail, size and positioning.
On the road at christmas (from 2019)
These are my 5 must-visit Christmas window displays in London, what would you add to your list? Which of these suggestions do you feel inspired to go and visit this year?
Last Updated on September 23, 2022 by Lucy Clarke
