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A fascinating history of stores from Harrods to Barneys and Galeries Lafayette, which have offered excitement to millions of visitors for more than a century
Overview
This superbly illustrated book goes behind the window displays, eye-catching shopping bags and promotional extravaganzas to reveal the history and design of the department store in marvellous richness and detail.
Born in the 'Gilded Age' in France, the department store grew up thanks to the Industrial Revolution, the rise of the middle class, and the invention of steel-frame architecture and the elevator. Spectacular entrances led to marble staircases and floor after floor of merchandise and amenities. Department stores also inspired a whole new way of merchandising: shopping became an entertainment rather than a laborious grind; posters and advertisements were created by the great artists of the time; and elaborate shop windows attracted thousands of people during the holidays. The department store quickly spread through Europe and Asia and then the New World, and leading architects were commissioned to build these temples of consumerism, where dreams were created and fulfilled.
Reviews
'Large and stylish … a feast'
The Times
Product Information
Book Details
Format: Hardback
Size: 32.0 x 24.0 cm
Extent: 264 pp
Publication date: 7 November 2011
ISBN: 9780500516027
Contents List
Introduction: Wonders of the World • 1. A World of Department Stores • 2. The Endless Shopping Spree • 3. Building to Impress • 4. Getting Attention • 5. Window Gazing • 6. Merchandising Spectacles • 7. Services and Circuses
About the Author
JanWhitaker is the author of Service and Style: How the American Department Store Fashioned the Middle Class and Tea at the Blue Lantern Inn: A Social History of the Tea Room Craze in America.
