We were mooching around town last week, and decided to pop by and see Mary Portas' shop in House of Fraser. We've been watching Mary's 3-part tv series, on her creating a fashion collection for women. As we arrived on the third floor, it was very buzzy in Mary's shop. Mary's shop felt very quite different to the rest of House of Fraser, it even had it's own shop signage by the entrance. What struck me was how edgey and modern this was and I loved the little details, like the small area where you could have a perch and drink a Mary coffee and flip through some fashion magazines while you wait for your friend/partner etc shop or change in the changing rooms. It felt like a lifestyle store, abit like Anthropologie, but on a much smaller scale. Selling coffee, gorgeous notebooks, ceramics, beauty products as well as clothes, shoes and accessories. The branding of the shop was great, really consistent and still quirky. There was even a 'moan phone' so that you could pick up and call and leave a message on Mary's voicemail. If you had a complaint or wanted to voice your opinion you could, and apparently Mary picks up the messages herself at the end of each week. I thought that was a nice idea! The mannequins made were fun, they're all Mary clones, with her trademark orange burst hair and statuesque frame. I came away thinking, this is a great shopping experience and also all the products were of high quality too. It's true, Mary is the queen of shops!
