Is Selfridge a real store? Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of high-end department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Selfridges Retail Limited, part of the Selfridges Group of department stores. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge
Harry Gordon Selfridge
Harry Gordon Selfridge, Sr. was an American-British retail magnate who founded the London-based department store Selfridges. His 20-year leadership of Selfridges led to his becoming one of the most respected and wealthy retail magnates in the United Kingdom. He was known as the 'Earl o…
Is Selfridges and Selfridges the same?
Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of high-end department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Canadian group Selfridges Retail Limited, part of the Selfridges Group of department stores. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1908.
What is another name for the department store Selfridges?
This article is about the department store. For other uses, see Selfridge (disambiguation). Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of high-end department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Canadian group Selfridges Retail Limited, part of the Selfridges Group of department stores.
Who is the founder of Selfridges?
It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1908. The flagship store on London 's Oxford Street is the second largest shop in the UK (after Harrods) and opened on 15 March 1909. Other Selfridges stores opened in the Trafford Centre (1998) and Exchange Square (2002) in Manchester, and in the Bullring in Birmingham (2003).
Do they still have Selfridges in Oxford Street?
In 2013, an ITV programme starring Jeremy Piven as Harry Gordon Selfridge portrayed his opening of the store and its initial trials and tribulations. The original store can still be found on Oxford Street and is open from 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM Monday through Saturday and on Sunday from 11:30 AM to 6:15 PM.
Is Selfridges trustworthy?
Overview. Selfridges & Co has a consumer rating of 1.29 stars from 28 reviews indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Consumers complaining about Selfridges & Co most frequently mention customer service problems. Selfridges & Co ranks 75th among Department Store sites.
Is Selfridges based on true story?
Harry Gordon Selfridge, Sr. (11 January 1858 – 8 May 1947) was an American retail magnate who founded the London-based department store Selfridges. His 20-year leadership of Selfridges led to his becoming one of the most respected and wealthy retail magnates in the United Kingdom.
Who owns Selfridges now?
Wittington InvestmentsSelfridges GroupSelfridges/Parent organizations
Why is Selfridges so good?
It has not only invested in its website and mobile app, but also its Chinese language website to tap into a lucrative international market. Alongside this, it has improved how online orders are delivered both in the UK and internationally with its Selfridges Plus subscription service.
What happened to Selfridges?
The Weston family put the Selfridges business up for auction in July 2021, with an estimated value of £4 billion. The sale includes all stores including the flagship Oxford Street store and worldwide outlets. In early December 2021, the family was reported to be finalising the chain's sale to Central Group.
Who owns Harrods now?
QH Participations LimitedQatar Investment AuthorityHarrods/Parent organizations
Is Miss Selfridge the same as Selfridges?
Miss Selfridge is a British fashion brand and former high street store chain which began as the young fashion section of Selfridges department store in London in 1966. It was part of the Arcadia Group, controlled by Sir Philip Green, which went into administration in late 2020.
Is it cheaper to buy from Selfridges?
Around 65% of the products were cheaper in Selfridges than in the European test stores which included Galeries Lafayette in Paris and La Rinascente in Milan. The research also included specialist fashion stores and smaller own-brand boutiques both in Paris and Milan.
How many Selfridges are there?
Overall the group operates 25 stores worldwide across its five brands.
What Colour is Selfridges yellow?
The Story Behind Selfridges' Yellow The colour actually stems from the creation of a yellow rose. Grown to celebrate the store's 75th anniversary in 1984, the Selfridges rose, Rosa 'Selfridges' is a Hybrid Tea Rose with large blooms made up of a swirling pattern of lemon-yellow petals that roll softly at the edges.
Why is Selfridges pink?
The department store at Bullring shopping centre is having to 15,000 external silver-coloured disks removed from the facade. They are to be re-painted blue before being reattached. While the work is carried out the building will be temporarily covered in a pink and black wrap that will also be an art installation.
What makes Selfridges different?
Selfridges has embraced a concession model, allowing brands to run their own shop-in-shops. Because brands typically manage their own stock and personnel with greater focus, the approach often outperforms the traditional wholesale model, according to retail analysts.
Why is Selfridges so successful?
1) Selfridges has the British love for a cup of tea to thank for its success. Not only was funding for the store covered by tea tycoon John Musker in 1907, but a change in consumption patterns was key to the success of department stores in the 18th and 19th centuries. The tea boom brought with it the need for all manner of tea-related products, and department stores stocked up on teapots, cups, saucers and sugar bowls to meet the growing demand.
When did Harry Selfridge open his store?
Harry Selfridge arrived in London from Chicago in 1906, with grand plans to open an extravagant department store where ‘everyone was welcome’.
Why did Selfridges use window dressing?
2) Selfridges was one of the first shops in Britain to introduce window dressing as a way of enticing customers into the store, in the second half of the Victorian era. This represented a markedly different change in approach – previously, shopkeepers often stood in the shop’s doorway trying to lure customers into the store, a habit which had gained them a poor reputation for ‘greed, pettiness and narrow-mindedness’. Window displays served an educative purpose as well as a commercial one, and they often displayed the latest inventions and ideas, which huge crowds would stop to inspect.
Why was Selfridges blamed for theft?
Selfridges was blamed for encouraging temptation, and thefts at the store were used as evidence of this.
When did Miss Selfridge open?
In 1965 , Miss Selfridge opened on Duke Street in London complete with a mezzanine coffee bar and tailored music. It has the ‘Swinging Sixties’ to thank for its success. Today, Miss Selfridge is a recognisable and well-loved feature of the British High Street.
Who published Miss Selfridge?
Today, Miss Selfridge is a recognisable and well-loved feature of the British High Street. Pamela Horn’s Behind the Counter is published by Amberley Publishing, 2015, and is available at all good bookstores and the Amberley website. To find out more, click here.
What was the purpose of the basement at Selfridges?
5) During the Second World War, the store basement at Selfridges was used as an impromptu air-raid shelter. As early as 1939, the government commandeered department stores for military purposes and often arrangements were ambitious, with entire floors being used as hospitals and walls reinforced with steel supports.
When was Selfridges founded?
Click to Shop now. The Gimbels to Harrods Macy’s, Selfridges was founded in 1909 by Harry Gordon Selfridge. Selfridge began his career at Marshall Field’s in Chicago, but after realising that he could only move up so far and that many of his ideas were not taking root within the company, he left the United States for Britain ...
What did Selfridge do to change the perception of the department store?
He made heavy use of advertising and gimmicks to draw in customers and also permitted browsing, let customers handle merchandise, and paid his employees a high enough wage that permitted them to live away from the business instead of over it. He also coined the phrase “the customer is always right”.
Why was Harry Gordon Selfridge important?
Harry Gordon Selfridge focused much of his attention on women from all social classes. His store was the first to have women’s toilets, permitting them to stay all day instead of having to go home. He even championed women’s suffrage at a time when suffragettes bombed public buildings to bring attention to their cause. He flew their flag above the shop, published ads in their newspapers, and carried items in their colours. Selfridge’s patronage is attributed as one of the reasons why his store was never attacked.
How many feet is Selfridges on Oxford Street?
Despite being second to Harrods in sales, Selfridges is the largest shop on Oxford Street with 650,000 feet of retail space. It has also been twice voted the World’s Best Department Store at the World Department Store Summit; once in June 2010 and again in May 2012.
Did Selfridges make army uniforms?
During WWI, Selfridges lost the contract to make army uniforms, but ended up having the contract to make the underwear for the French army. During WWII, soldiers from the US Army Signal Corps used one of the basements for their operations. Located 60 metres below the street, it was safe from bombs, had secure telecommunications, and wasn’t too far from the US Embassy.
Who is the author of Mr Selfridge?
As the fourth and final series of ITV's Mr Selfridge draws to a close, Lindy Woodhead, author of Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge, talks about the real Harry Selfridge and his family, and the television drama series based on her book.
When is the last episode of Mr Selfridge?
Don't miss the final episode of Mr Selfridge: Friday 11 March on ITV.
Why did I write about Harry Selfridge?
Why did I write about Harry Selfridge? That’s easy to answer – his story is a biographer’s dream. His was a life of ‘rags to riches’ and then virtually back to rags again. A life so full of hubris, that following his death in 1947 he was only remembered for his shortcomings, rather than his spectacular successes. When I started writing his real life story in 2004, Londoners and tourists alike were totally familiar with the glorious, imposing building on Oxford Street, but knew little or nothing about the man who built it, giving me a perfect opportunity to shine a light on one of the greatest retailing geniuses of the 20th century.
How many feet did Selfridge fall?
Unaccountably Ms Woodhead fails to report this calamitous incident in her book (although she does mention that Selfridge fell 12 feet and was injured whilst inspecting the building of his new Food Hall in 1935, so we can at least see where the idea came from).
What was the 1917 bet that Selfridge would surpass Harrods?
Finally there is the little matter of the 1917 bet Selfridge had with Sir Woodman Burbidge, Managing Director of Harrods. The bet was that by six years after the end of the Great War, Selfridge’s turnover would exceed Harrods. The bet was called in 1927 and at that point Harrods was still bigger so Selfridge, as the loser, had to pay for a model of the Harrods store. Not any old model, but one made of solid silver.
Did Selfridge fund the building of houses for heroes?
And whilst it is true that Selfridge did fund the building of some “houses for heroes” (in Acton) after the First World War, there is no indication in Ms Woodhead’s book that the architect was a women who had a dalliance with old Harry but was planning to defraud him.
Is there a fourth season of Mr Selfridge?
With the fourth and final season of Mr Selfridge under way, Stephen Benton has been doing some digging behind the scenes into some of the colourful characters of the TV version in an attempt to separate the historical facts from the dramatic licence. Stephen shares his findings below:
Is Mr Selfridge based on a book?
In the opening credits of the ITV series Mr Selfridge it states it is based on Lindy Woodhead’s book Shopping, Seduction and Mr Selfridge.
Horrendous
Horrendous. Should have read the reviews before buying from them. They delivered the wrong Love, Dont Be Shy by Kilian. They didnt have the one I had ordered was not available according to them so they had to replace it with 'their own favourite!' Hopeless. Just ridiculously hopeless. Should have read other people's reviews before buying from them.
Terrible Customer Services
I don't even want to give the one star rating, Selfridges are that bad. My husband purchased a Cartier bangle on the 13th December 2022. It was an expensive item as you can imagine. I didn't like it so we sent it back, on the 4th January, all arranged by the courier service, they use DPD.
Poor customer service and website
poor customer serviceand websit. They sold me a Macallan harmony, then cancelled it days later (whilst selling and fulfilling other orders from a day later than my order. They keep putting stock on the website that they don’t have available and keep your money for over a week before fending. I’m still awaiting my refund.
TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE
I have been paying for free shipping to the United States for many years. Sometimes my bank doesn't let a transaction go through till I verify I am making the purchase at Selfridges which is for my protection. I have made at least 1000 purchases through out a few years. Yet, one day I contacted them three times because their site was rejecting my payment! My bank said it was not them it has to do with Selfridges.
Selfridges Bad Experience
Selfridges, sadly they managed to mess up the present for my 30th Wedding Anniversary. It was a high value item that they needed me to buy by phone, not online via the website. They took my money, then cancelled my order left me high and dry. Then wanted to blame me. Selfridges...
Shockingly bad!
How is this company still not sorting out issues after nearly 2000 bad reviews. After an awful Experience at Christmas with this company I was given a £40 e voucher. I did not really feel confident in using this but I decided to reorder my missing Christmas presents (Long story...
Absolutely appalling company
Absolutely appalling company. I placed a same day delivery order, paying £12 for an item I could have bought elsewhere for much cheaper, but as I needed it ASAP I decided to buy it from Selfridges which turns out was a MASSIVE mistake.
How did Selfridge promote shopping?
Selfridge promoted the radical notion of shopping for pleasure rather than necessity. The store was extensively promoted through advertising. The shop floors were structured so that goods could be made more accessible to customers. There were elegant restaurants with modest prices, a library, reading and writing rooms, special reception rooms for French, German, American and "Colonial" customers, a First Aid Room, and a Silence Room, with soft lights, deep chairs, and double-glazing, all intended to keep customers in the store as long as possible. Staff members were taught to be on hand to assist customers, but not too aggressively, and to sell the merchandise. Oliver Lyttelton observed that, when one called on Selfridge, he would have nothing on his desk except one's letter, smoothed and ironed.
When did Selfridges open?
Selfridges, Oxford Street, opened to the public on 15 March 1909, and Selfridge remained chairman until 1941. In 1947, he died in London at age 89.
What happened to Gordon Selfridge's wife?
Selfridge's wife Rose died during the influenza pandemic of 1918; his mother died in 1924. As a widower, Selfridge had numerous liaisons, including those with the celebrated Dolly Sisters and the divorcée Syrie Barnardo Wellcome, who would later become better known as the decorator Syrie Maugham. He also began and maintained a busy social life and entertained lavishly both at his home in Lansdowne House, located at 9 Fitzmaurice Place, Mayfair, just off Berkeley Square, and on his private yacht, the SY Conqueror, with VIP guests such as Rudyard Kipling cruising the Mediterranean. Lansdowne House displays a blue plaque noting that Gordon Selfridge lived there from 1921 to 1929.
When did Harry Selfridge open his own store?
In 1904 , Harry opened his own department store called Harry G. Selfridge and Co. in Chicago. However, after only two months he sold the store at a profit to Carson, Pirie and Co. He then decided to retire, and for the next two years puttered around his properties, mainly Harrose Hall.
Who was Violette Selfridge married to?
Violette Selfridge (5 June 1897 – 1996) - she married Jacques Jean de Sibour on 4 May 1921 and they were divorced in February 1949.
Where was the original Oxford Street store?
Original Oxford Street store in London. In 1906, when Selfridge travelled to London on holiday with his wife, he noticed that although the city was a cultural and commercial leader, its stores could not rival Field's in Chicago or the great galleries of Parisian department stores.
Did Harry Selfridge have children?
This left his wife Lois to bring up three young boys. Selfridge's two brothers died at a very young age shortly after the war ended, so Harry became his mother's only child.
When did Harry Selfridge leave the store?
In 1939 , at the age of 81, 30 years after building Selfridges, revolutionising London retailing and creating what would be known as the greatest shopping street in the world, Harry Selfridge was ousted from the store he had always thought of his own.
What is the unique thing about Harry Selfridge?
Here she tells the story of the extraordinary man who created the retail experience we know today. Unique: With his waxed moustache and fastidious dress sense Harry Selfridge was the epitome of tradition. Harry Selfridge was unique. With his waxed moustache and fastidious dress sense he was the epitome of tradition yet empowered women by offering ...
Who was Harry Selfridge?
A loving husband who adored his wife, he cheated on her with a succession of stars, including dancers Isadora Duncan and Anna Pavlova.
When was the first in-store restaurant in the US?
He also created what was possibly the first US in-store restaurant. Opened in 1890, Field’s Tea Room served ‘light luncheon’ dishes at tables bedecked with crisp linen, with a fresh rose in a crystal vase. Just 60 diners ate there the first day. Within a year, it had more than 1,500 covers daily.
Is Mr Selfridge on ITV1?
BBC1’s The Paradise will soon face a rival period drama in the schedules set around a great department store: Mr Selfridge on ITV1. Telling the colourful, turbulent life of the American retailing genius who founded his store in 1909, it’s based on the book Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge by Lindy Woodhead.
When did Selfridge get ousted?
Eventually, Selfridge’s spending spiralled out of control as the Great Depression hit his profits, and he was ousted from the board in 1941.
Who was Harry Gordon Selfridge's mother?
An undated picture of Harry Gordon Selfridge with his mother, Lois, in London - she died in 1924. Wheaton-Smith was arrested for smuggling semen from French Charolais cattle into Britain, which was used to inseminate Ayrshire cows belonging to Lord Beaverbrook and British Agriculture adviser Sandy Copeland.
Who played Harry Selfridge in Mr Selfridge?
A shot from season three of Mr Selfridge, starring Jeremy Piven (pictured third from right) as Harry Selfridge. +8. Copy link to paste in your message. An undated photograph showing Harry Selfridge with his daughter Rosalie - Mrs Augur's grandmother.
Where did Serge and Jane live?
After their marriage, the couple lived with Selfridge in London’s Portman Square while Serge started a short-lived aviation company that only ever made one machine – a two-seat utility biplane that was illustrated in the 1919 edition of Jane’s All The World’s Aircraft.
Who is Harry Selfridge's granddaughter?
Cleone Augur (pictured) is the great-granddaughter of Harry Selfridge and says his story is even stranger than the fiction shown on the hit ITV show
Who is the great granddaughter of Mr Selfridge?
Cleone Augur, the great-granddaughter of the man who revolutionised British shopping, says the real story of Mr Selfridge and his family includes Russian assassins, showgirls, drug scandals, a slide into poverty – and a bizarre tale of smuggled bull semen. Mrs Augur has never spoken in public about the series and says she watches ...
Did Mr Selfridge have a beard?
Mrs Augur says Mr Selfridge was not unfaithful - and he never had a beard. Cleone Augur (pictured) is the great-granddaughter of Harry Selfridge and says his story is even stranger than the fiction shown on the hit ITV show. Fans of the ITV series Mr Selfridge probably think they know everything about the colourful American tycoon – from his trim, ...
Overview
Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of high-end department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Selfridges Retail Limited, part of the Selfridges Group of department stores. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1908.
The historic Daniel Burnham-designed flagship store on London's Oxford Street i…
History
The basis of Harry Gordon Selfridge's success was his relentlessly innovative marketing, which was elaborately expressed in his Oxford Street store. Originally from America himself, Selfridge attempted to dismantle the idea that consumerism was strictly an American phenomenon. He tried to make shopping a fun adventure and a form of leisure instead of a chore, transforming the dep…
Architecture
Selfridge stores are known for architectural innovation and excellence, and are tourist destinations in their own right. The original London store was designed by Daniel Burnham, who also created the Marshall Field's main store in his home town of Chicago. Burnham was the leading American department store designer of the time and had works in Boston (Filenes's), New York (Gimbel's, Wanamak…
Windows
Selfridges' windows have become synonymous also with the brand, and to a certain degree have become as famous as the company and Oxford Street location itself. Selfridges has a history of bold art initiatives when it comes to the window designs. Selfridge himself likened the act of shopping to the act of attending the theatre and encouraged his customers to make this connection …
Opening day and marketing
The long lasting influence that Harry Selfridge would have on shopping and department stores became immediately clear with Selfridges' opening day. The store’s opening to much fanfare on 15 March 1909 laid the foundation for the success of the entire lifestyle that Selfridge aimed to promote. Even before the unveiling of the window displays, innovative marketing techniques set up the …
Controversies
• After protests by animal welfare advocates, in November 2009 Selfridges agreed to stop selling foie gras (a delicacy made from the livers of forcibly fattened ducks and geese).
• In July 2010, Selfridges apologized publicly after its Manchester store displayed an Alexander McQueen garment hanging from a gallows-like structure, just months after the designer committed suicide by hanging.
In culture
ITV and Masterpiece produced a series entitled Mr Selfridge, first airing on ITV beginning in January 2013 (in ten parts), and later on PBS starting on 30 March 2013 (in eight parts). ITV began airing ten additional episodes in January 2014. The fourth series began in 2016 with the first episode airing on 8 January 2016.
Selfridges was also featured in the 2017 movie Wonder Woman as the shop where Steve Trevor ta…
Further reading
• Honeycombe, Gordon. Selfridges, Seventy-Five Years: The Story of the Store 1909–84. London, 1984. ISBN 0902935275.