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Food and drink retailers: have you planned out or even installed your Christmas window display for 2022?
If not, it’s time to get cracking.
For food and drink businesses, a great window display is always important. People eat with their eyes – and you only have one chance to make a great first impression, and to stand out from the crowd.
At Christmas, this is even more important. The average Christmas food and drink budget in the UK stands at over £200 – and that’s not even including the money spent on food and drink gifts.
While some people choose to shop primarily online, there are still plenty of people who love the whole Christmas shopping experience. The right festive window display can add to that customer experience. Whether you’re a small deli, a large food hall or a specialist food and drink retailer, getting into the festive spirit, putting a smile on potential customers’ faces and demonstrating just why they should choose you for their Christmas food and drink spend will set you apart from the competition.
If you’re stuck for Christmas window display ideas this year, here are four that I’ve found that I truly love…
1. Fortnum & Mason, London, 2014
I love this Fortnum & Mason window display from 2014. As well as showcasing products that could be given as Christmas gifts, they displayed products that suggested a Christmas feast at home: whisky and decanters, stands stacked with pies, jars of chutneys ready to be served. It’s a scene that feels traditional and decadent.
2. Le Printemps Haussmann, Paris, 2020
In 2020 this Parisian department store was closed due to COVID-19 restrictions, but it didn’t stop them from decorating their windows in style. Here, various boxes of chocolates are illuminated for the world to see: the Parisian scenes in the background highlight that they’re locally produced, the striking red colour of the boxes gives a festive feel as well as easily catching the eye of passers-by.
3. Bettys, Harrogate, 2022
Bettys of Harrogate have gone with a Christmas cracker theme for this year’s window display: an incredible display that reveals a huge red Christmas cracker bursting open to reveal a whole host of Bettys Christmas treats. It’s a sizeable display that conveys the magic and fun of the festive season – and the brand’s choice of lighting simply adds to the magic.
4. Ffenestr Siop Cywain, various locations in Wales, 2022
It’s not just permanent food and drink stores that create great festive window displays. Stand-out Christmas pop up shop design is vital for stores who are only open for the Christmas shopping period. People love to see something new and different: you want people to know you’re there, and give them good reasons to buy.
It’s exactly what the Ffenestr Siop Cywain (Cywain Shop Window) project is doing this year. The team have premises in five of Wales’ major shopping centres, their windows packed with Welsh food and drink products. Instead of entering the premises, shoppers look through the window, and if they see a product they like the look of, they scan the QR code next to it to be taken directly to the producer’s website.
How will you decorate your Christmas windows this year?