During my recent fleeting visit to London to see the Burberry Makers House exhibition with Henry Moore, I paid an extremely overdue first visit to Regent Street where I browsed the Coach and Burberry flagship stores that I had only ever read about previously.
The Burberry store was expectedly beautiful and despite having read so much about its innovation and jaw-dropping size, I still wasn't prepared for the sheer scale of it. It felt much more like I was walking around a museum than a store but of course, given Burberry's leading stance in UK designer brands, this was naturally fitting and I wouldn't have really expected any less. Having just come from the Makers House exhibition after a quick walk through Carnaby Street, I was very attuned to the constant references to Henry Moore throughout the store. I really liked that a 'mini-exhibition' or a wall full of sketches and swatches like those at Makers House had been hung on the first wall by the entrance; it was a really authentic touch and I think it played well to Burberry's strengths as a brand of finely crafted and quality pieces, telling a story of its production and its association with a number of artists and influential figures. 
A topic that I have been subconsciously tracking throughout the year has been the innovation of digital technologies and virtual reality in the fashion industry. As my critical journal is intended to track the developments of the fashion industry throughout the year, this of course meant that digital advancements have been abundant - especially those related to fashion and the big changes taking place in the industry this year. Burberry have always been at the forefront of those changes in mine and in fashion professionals' eyes and it was really encouraging to come to the flagship store and see their influence and daring retail strategy firsthand.
An LED screen on an immense scale - stretching across both floors - played a series of images and video clips of the recent collection, as well as footage of the Henry Moore exhibition while slimmer screens on the top level played more clips of a similar nature. The music was signature Burberry; the same audio that can be heard in their advertorial videos blasting out across the store from the second level. The whole experience was extremely immersive with every sense being targeted; I wouldn't have been surprised to find out that Burberry's perfume's weren't sprayed around the store regularly throughout the day. It was clear from my visit that Burberry have a lot to say and do in the fashion industry before any one else does it first. The atmosphere was very special; I felt quite 'VIP' just walking around and surprisingly, the experience wasn't especially intimidating - even with a paper Primark bag in hand! Catching a glimpse of the signature Burberry trench coats was another memorable element and (naturally) I had to try one on, if only I'd been brave enough to take a photo in it with all of those shop assistants' eyes on me!
I then headed over to the Coach flagship store which I had extremely high expectations for, given how much I had studied it last term - and I wasn't disappointed. While Burberry's store oozed sophistication and boasted about the brand's stance as a powerhouse in the industry, Coach's store felt much more authentic; its decoration matched its laid-back New York style and heritage remained a prominent aspect of the brand's personality throughout. Craftsmanship, a core value of the Coach brand, is visibly important to the brand and was evidence of it was displayed throughout the store - from printing machinery and sewing machines to a large display of personalised tags. While Burberry's store felt quite cold and luxurious, Coach seemed much more approachable given its carpeted floors, stacks of merchandise and foliage decoration. Just the act of walking down Regent Street felt very unique; I noticed that the streets seemed cleaner and rather than walking head down, the people on the streets turned their heads as the impressive visual merchandising in the front windows caught their eyes. Tourism was clearly very high on this street and I saw a number of guided tours and tourist buses passing through, drawn into the idea of making a purchase on the famous designer street of the rich and wealthy. 
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