Selfridges was today named as the world’s best department store. The UK-based chain fought off competition from New York’s Bloomingdales and Lane Crawford in Hong Kong to capture the retail prize, decided on behalf of the Intercontinental Group of Department Stores and the International Association of Department Stores.

Selfridges, whose flagship store in London is renowned for its innovative window displays, received the accolade at the global department store summit in New York. Paul Kelly, the store’s vice-chairman, acknowledged the hard work of the company’s staff.

Selfridges is a chain of high end department stores in the United Kingdom. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge. The flagship store in London’s Oxford Street is the second largest shop in the UK (after Harrods) and was opened on 15 March 1909.

More recently, three other stores have been opened; in Trafford, Greater Manchester (1998), in Manchester  City Centre’s Exchange Square (2002) and in the Bullring, Birmingham  (2003). The store was for a long time part of the famous Lewis’s  group.

Selfridges windows have become synonymous also with the brand, and to a certain degree have become as famous as the company and Oxford Street location itself. Selfridges has a history of bold art initiatives when it comes to the window designs.

When the building was undergoing restoration, the scaffolding was shrouded with a giant photograph of stars such as Sir Elton John by Sam Taylor-Wood. The windows consistently attract tourists, designers and fashionistas alike to marvel at the current designs and styling and fashion trends.

Since 2002 the windows have been photographed by London photographer Andrew Meredith and published in magazines such as Vogue, Dwell, Icon, Frame  Magazine, Creative Review, Hungarian Stylus Magazine, Design Week, Harper’s Bazaar, New York Times, WGSN and much more including world wide press, journals, blogs and published books all over the world.