A window shopper's dream (Selfridges)

Member Name: CTVicky

Product:	Selfridges
Date:	02/09/09 (81 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: So beautiful - the building, the products, the nature of the staff

Disadvantages: Expensive!

I'm poor so I can't actually afford to buy the vast majority of their products, but it's great to window shop here!

Selfridges is a very large department store; the flagship store that I am writing about is in Oxford Street, London, arguably THE street for fashion in the UK. However you'll find two Selfridges in Manchester and one in Birmingham.

The building itself in London is beautiful. On the outside you have one of the finest examples of Art Deco architecture, with probably some of the most beautiful doors in the world! On the inside there are often some wonderful art installations commissioned for the purposes of decorating the store.

In Selfridges you'll find a lot of the best designer brands, including Vivienne Westwood and Gucci.

You can buy almost everything from womens' clothes to high-end mens' shaving equipment to pianos!

It really is a wonder walking around the store, looking at all the things there are to buy. When I went, just before Christmas, there were several working massage chairs on display. Honestly, that was probably the most blissful half an hour of my life.

There's a large section dedicated just to gadgets. When I went, on display there was realistic looking fake snow, electric cigarettes and self-flying model helicopters. There were lots of members of staff giving demonstrations to cutomers.

That's another thing, everything is laid out so beautifully, and the staff members are very good at their jobs. They don't eye you suspiciously and pester you as you walk around, they're genuinely friendly and mostly just let you get on with it.

What most stunned me was their grocery department. Yes. Selfridges sell food! I couldn't believe it. This part was gorgeous. There were actual sculptures made out of squashes and marrows. It all smelt lovely. There were bowls of fresh olives to scoop up.

What I did manage to afford was a chocolate cake which was absolutely divine and not too cheekily priced, and I bought myself a delicious fruit smoothie from the from the little cafe near the bakery.

Summary: Definitely somewhere to visit if you're in London for a few days.