London Retailers Gear Up for Coronation Shopping Bonanza
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London’s retail and hospitality sector is expected to benefit greatly from the increased footfall brought in by King Charles III’s three-day coronation celebration this weekend.
New West End Company, which lobbies on behalf of 600 businesses in the key central London shopping areas of Mayfair, Soho and Oxford Circus, said this once-in-a-lifetime royal occasion is expected to draw in 1.75 million domestic and international visitors to the West End, representing a 24 percent jump from the last May bank holiday.
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To bump up the royal experience, some 247 aerial Union Jack flags, coronation planters and a series of “Get Your Royal On” street installations were put in place within the popular shopping area right next to Buckingham Palace.
Dee Corsi, chief executive officer of New West End Company, said, “From royal-inspired menus in our district’s famous restaurants to family-friendly activities, we can promise visitors that the West End will be offering a happy and glorious range of experiences that are fit for a king, yet accessible to all.”
Predictive analytics company MRI Springboard anticipated that Central London will see a 4 percent uplift in footfall during the coronation weekend, compared to the same period in 2022, but will remain 10 percent lower than in 2019.
Diane Wehrle, insights director at MRI Springboard, said, “Many people will visit the capital to witness the event. Whilst the overall footfall level in Central London will be lower than over the weekend just gone, in areas like Knightsbridge that are iconic in terms of the British Brand but relatively distant from Westminster Abbey, we are anticipating that footfall will be more resilient.”
Tenants in the area are well prepared to capture new business opportunities.
According to Grosvenor Property, which owns and manages the London Estate in Mayfair and Belgravia on behalf of its owner the Duke of Westminster, it’s hosting an open-to-all garden party in Grosvenor Square. There will be cinema-sized screens and seating across both Saturday and Sunday for visitors to watch the coronation ceremony and Windsor concert.
Rachel McCulloch, head of marketing at Grosvenor Property, said that given how overwhelmingly popular the Platinum Jubilee street party they hosted last year on North Audley Street was, she is confident that the garden party idea would really resonate with visitors in central London.
“We have adapted that campaign slightly for this year by putting it in Grosvenor Square so that we can help to support more retailers across Mayfair. Last year, while there was a huge benefit for some tenants, we know that we can spread that benefit elsewhere because the opportunity for retailers and businesses in our portfolio to capitalize on the opportunity is huge,” McCulloch added.
More than 20 brands from its portfolio will participate in the party and the wider celebrations it’s planning. The area will be decorated with interactive floral installations from Moyses Stevens. The Barley Mow on Duke Street will offer a Coronation Chicken Burger, while its nearby sustainable, low-waste restaurant Apricity is partnering with English sparkling wine producer Roebuck Estates to serve some of its finest vintages.
Matchesfashion’s town house on Carlos Place overlooking The Connaught will offer complimentary cocktails in the garden from Friday to Sunday afternoon. Valextra down the road will have chocolates from Pierre Marcolini until Monday, with floral displays created by Scarlet & Violet, while jeweler Annoushka will offer a limited-edition commemorative Crown locket charm. The design is based on the St. Edwards Crown which will be worn by King Charles III when he is anointed king.
Up the road from Grosvenor Square, Selfridges is offering a silver-served Champagne afternoon tea at Dolly’s Café on the lower ground floor for the long weekend. The set will come with traditional finger sandwiches, warm scones, savory bites and miniature desserts with a coronation twist. Each table will also receive a commemorative edible coronation plate, with a crispy gingerbread base, and passionfruit caramel and dark chocolate ganache inside.
Harrods, meanwhile, given its former owner Mohamed al-Fayed’s history with the current monarch, understandably is laying low for the occasion, with no major celebratory events planned. It has, however, issued a coronation blend of English breakfast tea, and Scottish shortbread fingers, both in decorative tins.
Steven Medway, chief executive officer of the Knightsbridge and King’s Road Partnerships, believes that festivities around the coronation and the preparations that have gone into the historic event should draw in the region of 10 to 15 percent more people across the district, which includes Harrods, as well as Harvey Nichols, Burberry, and the hotels Bulgari, Mandarin Oriental, The Berkeley and The Lanesborough.
“It’ll be a spectacular boon to Knightsbridge with all the same excitement that the Jubilee delivered, and only a little dampened by the government’s ill-conceived decision to withdraw tax-free shopping,” Medway added.
Savile Row, a street that hosts many of King Charles III’s tailors, is joining forces with nearby Clifford Street, Old Burlington Street, and parts of St. James’s in the Campaign for Wool, an initiative convened by the monarch in 2010, to celebrate the occasion by hanging over a mile of wool bunting above suitmakers such as Anderson & Sheppard, Dege & Skinner, Gieves & Hawkes, and Henry Poole & Co.
The bunting is created by apprentice tailors in participating companies and comprises red, white, and blue wool melton fabric from AW Hainsworth, the fabric supplier for historic British red military uniforms.
Anda Rowland, director at Anderson & Sheppard and chair of the Savile Row Bespoke Association, noted that Savile Row has had a very long relationship with the royal household, and this “has been a project close to everyone’s hearts for a once-in-a-lifetime and very special occasion.”
No place is more festive than Regent Street, owned by the current King under The Crown Estate, during the coronation holiday. There are more than 150 Union Jack flags flying above the street, and an art installation, inspired by the official emblem of the coronation, has been erected on St. James’s Market, where a big screen will be set up for the public to watch the coronation events for free.
Tenants on Regent Street also are preparing a cohort of activities for the big day. Both The Langham’s and Hotel Café Royal will offer coronation afternoon tea, while Bentley’s Oyster Bar & Grill will lay out the red carpet for guests with royal favorites on the menu, such as a royal fish pie, and smoked salmon with crispy egg and caviar, which was served to the late Queen Elizabeth II on her 80th birthday.
On the east side of Regent Street, Carnaby, the shopping district best known for being the birthplace of the Swinging ’60s, branded coronation shopping as the “perfect Instagram moment,” and urged visitors to take pictures with a shimmering crown arch installation. Tenants in the area are offering various incentives to attract spending. Camper and Han Kjøbenhavn is offering discounts, while Paul Smith is treating customers with Smith Gin & Tonic.
On Bond Street, visitors are being greeted with special flower installations featuring royal blue Senetti and white geraniums, while all boutiques have replaced their own flags with Union Jacks for the occasion.
Jeweler Boodles has teamed with Brown’s Hotel for an English garden afternoon tea set featuring finger sandwiches, pastries with fresh flowers, and a cake in the shape of a beehive drizzled with Highgrove honey. Guests will also receive postcards on which to write and congratulate the king. All letters will be delivered to Buckingham Palace.
Smythson, meanwhile, will fete the coronation with poet Greta Bellamacina penning a letter of congratulations to the new monarch, ahead of the opening of its in-store writing station at its New Bond Street flagship.
The legendary Claridge’s on Brook Street is offering a new Painter’s Room cocktail menu for guests who are in town for the royal celebration. The hotel’s windows are also highlighting some of its most memorable royal moments and treasures, including celebratory fans created by the hotel in 1911 for the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary, and Claridge’s menus and cocktail cards designed for the coronations of King George VI in 1937 and Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
The Dorchester on Park Lane, meanwhile, has recreated its iconic decorations from Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in honor of the crowning of her son. The design features banners of blue fabric draping across the hotel’s balconies, garlands festooned from the roof, and the royal cipher hung above the grand entrance. There are also a special floral display in the window, and royal-themed cocktails and afternoon tea at Vesper Bar and The Promenade, respectively, inside the hotel.
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