An early and somewhat soggy start on Monday for our trip to the M&S archive at Leeds University. We started with a talk about the development of the window display and merchandising from the start of the business as a Penny Bazaar up to today. Lots of of interesting information and images from various periods - some great fashions and not so great - knitted swimsuits! A tour of the galleries which have examples of vintage clothing items and household goods. Really interesting to see how they take inspiration from vintage labels and incorporate them into current designs; this goes for clothing too - fabric and style sources for the current collection. We were really interested to hear about Plan A which is basically a sustainability and environmentally friendly policy; new stores channel rainwater to flush the toilets and some stores have a sedum roof and walls, along with fair-trade cotton products. Well worth a visit.
Lots to see and take inspiration from. We then made the short journey to the Lakeside cafe at Roundhay park for lunch, which was delicious.
Lots more pictures on our Facebook page (permanent link in the lefthand drop down menu)
