The best retail Christmas displays around the world
Christmas is just around the corner, which means shops around the world are decking their windows with more than just boughs of holly.
Elaborately decorated shop windows have become a global phenomenon, transforming retail stores into festive destinations where shopping blends with storytelling and spectacle.
While it’s been over 150 years since the first Christmas windows were debuted at Macy’s in New York – and the world has transformed greatly with the domination of e-commerce – these windows are still captivating audiences, driving foot traffic and bringing the magic of the season to life.
Department stores from Harrods in London to Myer in Melbourne know that the annual visit to their windows is part of many families’ traditions, and tourists will beeline for selfies in front of the iconic displays.
Here are some of the best window displays from around the world.
Macy’s, New York
Macy’s is credited with pioneering the holiday-themed department store window, with the first display unveiled in 1874 at the original Macy’s on 14th Street in Manhattan.
The display featured porcelain dolls posed in scenes from Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
In 1883, Macy’s took its displays a step further by featuring an animated Santa pulled by a reindeer along a circular track.
The windows even featured in the 1947 film Miracle on 34th Street, cementing their cultural status.
This year, the theme for the Macy’s Herald Square Christmas windows is The Most Wonderful Stories Start Here”. It features scenes from Macy’s most memorable displays, including that very first 1874 window.
Selfridges, London
Selfridges opened its doors in March 1909, and that same year, its Oxford Street shopfront windows were dressed for Christmas – the first display of its kind in the UK.
Over the years, themes have ranged from 2013’s The Wish List, which featured oversized gifts, and 2018’s Selfridges Rocks Christmas, which saw Santa dressed in various rock ‘n’ roll outfits.
This year, Selfridges collaborated with Disney to put on a light and music show every evening.
It sees Tinker Bells’ pixie dust triggering a display that travels across more than 100 metres of sparkling lights wrapped around the building. It features 40 stars, the Jolly Roger ship from Peter Pan and Cinderella’s carriage.
The spectacle builds to reveal a Disney castle at the corner of Oxford and Duke streets.
Myer, Melbourne
The Myer Christmas Windows have been a centrepiece of Melbourne’s festive season for decades and have featured everything from Snugglepot and Cuddlepie to Australia Zoo.
It all began with long-term Myer employee Fred Asmussen, who worked as a “wheeler” boy moving products from one place to another in a wicker cart. He developed a talent for visual merchandising and, by 1939, was in charge of the Bourke Street windows.
In 1956, inspired by the summer Olympics, which Melbourne hosted that year, Asmussen created Santa and the Olympics – and the Myer Christmas Windows tradition was born.
This year, Lego is the theme as it celebrates its 70th anniversary.
Exactly 488,215 pieces of Lego have been used to construct the festive display, with the six famed windows telling the story of a child’s letter to Santa that is posted from Melbourne and arrives at his North Pole workshop.
Galleries Lafayette, Paris
Opened in 1912, Galeries Lafayette on Haussmann Boulevard is known as one of the most beautiful department stores, with its architecture inspired by the Paris Opera House.
Since 1976, the shop has been hanging a Christmas tree – which they claim to be the largest in the world – from the store’s art nouveau stained-glass dome.
Each year, the tree is transformed into a piece of modern art, with many brands and artists coming on board to design a display.
In 1997, Vivienne Westwood created a tree with cherubs and multicoloured bows; 2012 saw a collaboration with Swarovski in which the 21-metre-tall tree was adorned with thousands of crystals and topped with a giant chandelier; and in 2013, the tree was suspended upside down.
This year, illustrator Jeanne Detallante has collaborated on the display. The store has been turned into a whimsical reimagining of Santa’s workshop, and the tree is adorned with eight kilometres of LED garlands and over 560 kilograms of ribbons.
Brown Thomas, Dublin
The unveiling of the Brown Thomas Christmas windows has become synonymous with the official start of the festive season in Dublin, and usually takes place in mid-to-late October.
The display involves nearly a year of preparation by the in-house creative team, and when it comes to installing the display, Dublin’s Grafton Street is brought to a standstill.
The shop often collaborates with Irish talent for the displays, like author Ciara Molloy Tan for 2015’s Store of Wonders, where the windows told a bespoke fairytale which featured two siblings, Siún and Ruairi, along with magical creatures and, of course, Santa.
