I want to go to Harrods for Christmas
I’ve only been to Harrods a couple of times in my life, once in the early 2000’s when we were on a family holiday and again in 2012 when me and a friend spent a few days in the city supercar spotting. On both occasions we didn’t spend a great deal of time wandering the halls, the visits were more of a cursory glance and a box ticked. Have a laugh at the £20,000 television and being careful not to touch anything were my only memories.
Since then I’ve been on a journey of understanding within the luxury landscape and that has fostered an obsessed with the historic department store, which was ignited when a couple of years ago I stumbled across Hannah Ricketts vlog. There are details and departments I didn’t even notice from my visits, like “the world’s greatest food emporium” which is home to their fresh produce, bakery and confectionary counters offering all manner of decadent options.
There are several genre of Youtube videos that I find oddly motivating, one of which being supercars driving up and down the streets outside Harrods, and now apparently, Harrods itself. Seeing the food hall gives me this vision of a successful professional purchasing an impeccably presented salad for lunch, or heading into the art deco inspired “Fine Wines & Spirits destination” to pick up a bottle on a Friday night to celebrate a productive week. All of which is entirely manufactured by my imagination, but nonetheless, I find it aspirational.
So the store is magical on a normal day, but add in some of that Christmas sparkle and the vibes are off the chart. I can’t be the only one who holds a childish wonder of department stores in general. Perhaps in part due to curling up in front of a good Holiday movie. Miracle on 34th street and Elf being the classics, but the one that sticks in my mind the most is The Greatest Store in the World. A lesser known TV movie where a mother and her two daughters decide to live inside a department store after they become homeless. Showing its age now having first aired in the late 90's, but the thought of running free in such a place is the stuff kids dreams are made of.
The more we’ve seen retail suffer in recent years, the more valuable I think stores like Harrods become, able to weather the storm by offering an experience that isn’t made redundant by online shopping. Even in a world that’s seen the efficiency of direct to consumer business models become the dominant strategy, brands still see major department stores as a valuable place to be. Although it’s Harrods as a brand, as an iconic part of the Knightsbridge landscape that has me most intrigued. Being welcomed by the greeters on a snowy December day, and exploring the labyrinth of luxury is a scene i’m almost certain has been depicted on a Christmas card before.
Who knows if the reality will match what I’ve now built in my mind, but I look forward to finding out one day.
/Si
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