Liberty of London

Shop Report - Liberty of London, Womenswear Department 

Founded by Arthur Liberty of London is recognised as not only an iconic luxury fashion hotspot and department store, but also as one of the most enchanting structures to visit in London. Visually Liberty is beautiful inside and out. The tudor interior is eloquently charming; designed to create 'the feeling of comfort, as if you were walking around your own home.'  Smaller rooms of treasures lead off from the main spaces, complete with fireplaces tucked away beneath the archaic beams. 

The Womenswear department can  be located on the second floor. The little tiled stairwell opens out onto the main space, which houses all the current stock from a wide range of both national and international designers and brands. The Liberty womenswear department has got to be every girls' dream. Generously adorned with garments made from only the best fabrics; silks, organza, suedes, woollens, leathers, shearling and many more, make it an experience in itself it to just browse amongst the clothes to get an idea of the quality of these materials. Inhabited with a great selection of names too; Alexander Wang, Rick Owens, Dries Van Noten, Philip Lim, Margiela - all of the previous a few personal favourites. But weave through the delicate displays and old tudor doorways to find your true calling; be it a beautifully kitted-out vintage selection, lingerie room or the more mature designer labels. 

Of course there is a price to pay to call Liberty your local department store, with each customer spending around £800 - £1000 upon any given purchase. Completely rational really, if you dare to read a price tag whilst perusing the clothes you will see that most of the garment costs range from between £700 to a pricey £3000. The most expensive item - and surely the current most valuable- is the print Alexander McQueen gown, powerfully displayed in front of an eight-foot mirror looking out across the whole floor. It will set you back around £8000 to own this piece, I'm told by the highly fashion-enthused sales assistant. 

The store layout caters precisely to the needs of the potential buyer. The layout is minimal, yet not overly modernistic as to suit the period style of the building. Filling the main central space and dressed up in the latest couture offerings are three mannequins; just above them hang a set of stunning chandeliers which draw your eye through the upper layers of the shop to the beautifully beamed ceiling. Tall, simple stainless steel clothes rails are geometrically arranged so that the garments are easy to view and access, with a extremely low chance of becoming agitated at fellow shoppers alike whilst leafing through the garments. The calm, classy interior definitely reflects the ideal consumer of a store like Liberty - elegant, blasé with a well stocked wallet. Such an atmosphere is created by the soft music and lighting -  it is easy to slip into a dream of being the ideal consumer - making it the perfect place to spend a day floating amongst the various level of treasures and delights.