Liberty is a department store on Great Marlborough Street in the West End of London which sells luxury goods including women's, men's and children's fashion, cosmetics and fragrances, jewellery, accessories, homeware, furniture, stationery and gifts, and is known for its floral and graphic prints.
Turnover for 2015 was forecasted to be 145million, up from 132million in 2014.[1]
Arthur Lasenby Liberty was born in Chesham, Buckinghamshire in 1843. He was employed by Messrs Farmer and Rogers in Regent Street in 1862, the year of the International Exhibition at Kensington in London. By 1874, inspired by his 10 years of service, Arthur decided to start a business of his own, which he did the next year.
With a 2,000 loan from his future father-in-law, Arthur Liberty accepted the lease of half a shop at 218a Regent Street with three staff members.
The shop opened during 1875 selling ornaments, fabric and objets d'art from Japan and the East. Within eighteen months Arthur Liberty had repaid the loan and acquired the second half of 218 Regent Street. As the business grew, neighbouring properties were bought and added.
In 1884, Liberty introduced the costume department into the Regent Street store, directed by Edward William Godwin (183386). Godwin was a distinguished architect. He was a founding member of the Costume Society in 1882. He and Arthur Liberty created in-house apparel to challenge the fashions of Paris.
In 1885, 142144 Regent Street was acquired and housed the ever-increasing demand for carpets and furniture. The basement was named the Eastern Bazaar, and was the vending place for what was described as "decorative furnishing objects". He named the property Chesham House after the place in which he grew up. The store became the most fashionable place to shop in London and Liberty fabrics were used for both clothing and furnishings. Some of its clientele was exotic,[clarification needed] and included famous Pre-Raphaelite artists.
In November 1885, Liberty brought forty-two villagers from India to stage a living village of Indian artisans. Liberty's specialized in Oriental goods, in particular imported Indian silks, and the aim of the display was to generate both publicity and sales for the store. However, it was a disaster commercially and publicly, with concern about the way the villagers were put on display.
During the 1890s, Arthur Lasenby Liberty built strong relationships with many English designers. Many of these designers, including Archibald Knox, practised the artistic styles known as Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau, and Liberty helped develop Art Nouveau through his encouragement of such designers. The company became associated with this new style, to the extent that in Italy, Art Nouveau became known as the Stile Liberty, after the London shop.
The Tudor revival building was built so that trading could continue while renovations were being completed on the other premises and in 1924 this store was constructed from the timbers of two ships: HMS Impregnable (formerly HMS Howe) and HMS Hindustan. The frontage on Great Marlborough Street is the same length as the Hindustan. It is a Grade II* listed building.
The emporium was designed by Edwin Thomas Hall and his son Edwin Stanley Hall. They designed the building at the height of the 1920s fashion for Tudor revival. The shop was engineered around three light wells that formed the main focus of the building. Each of these wells was surrounded by smaller rooms to create a homely feel. Many of the rooms had fireplaces and some still exist.
The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner was very critical of the building's architecture, saying: "The scale is wrong, the symmetry is wrong. The proximity to a classical faade put up by the same firm at the same time is wrong, and the goings-on of a store behind such a faade (and below those twisted Tudor chimneys) are wrongest of all".[2]
Arthur Lasenby Liberty died in 1917, seven years before the completion of his shops.
Liberty, during the 1950s, continued its tradition for fashionable and eclectic design. All departments in the shop had a collection of both contemporary and traditional designs. New designers were promoted and often included those still representing the Liberty tradition for handcrafted work.
In 1955, Liberty began opening several regional stores in other UK cities; the first of these was in Manchester.[3] Subsequent shops opened in Bath, Brighton, Chester, York and Norwich.
During the 1960s, extravagant and Eastern influences once again became fashionable, as well as the Art Deco style, and Liberty adapted its furnishing designs from its archive.
In 1996, Liberty announced the closure of all of its department stores outside London, and instead focused on small shops at airports.[3]
Since 1988, Liberty has had a subsidiary in Japan which sells Liberty-branded products in major Japanese shops. It also sells Liberty fabrics to international and local fashion stores with bases in Japan.
Liberty's London store was sold for 41.5million and then leased back by the firm in 2009, to pay off debts ahead of a sale.[4] Subsequently, in 2010, Liberty was taken over by private equity firm BlueGem Capital in a deal worth 32million.[5]
In 2016 Libery's started selling Pure Elixir skin care tablets.
From 2 December 2013, Liberty was the focus of a three-part hour-long episode documentary series titled "Liberty of London", airing on Channel 4.[6][7] The documentary follows Ed Burstell (Managing Director) and the department's retail team in the busy lead up to Christmas 2013.[6][8]
Channel 4 further commissioned a second series of said documentary on 28 October 2014. This series featured four, one hour-long episodes based on six months worth of unprecedented footage. Series two commenced on 12 November 2014.[9]
Liberty has a history of collaborative projects from William Morris and Gabriel Dante Rossetti in the nineteenth century to Yves Saint Laurent and Dame Vivienne Westwood in the twentieth. Recent collaborations include brands such as Nike, Dr. Martens, Hello Kitty, Barbour, House of Hackney, Vans, Onia, Manolo Blahnik, Uniqlo and Superga.
Alison Adburgham, Liberty's A biography of a shop, George Allen and Unwin (1975)
Coordinates: 513050N 00825W / 51.5139N 0.1402W / 51.5139; -0.1402
View original post here:
Liberty (department store) - Wikipedia
- Information Overload - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Same-Sex Marriage Gains - Iowa, DC and Vermont - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Obama and the Muslim World - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Nordyke - Incorporation of the Second Amendment to Apply to the States - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Obama's First 100 Days - Reclaiming the Constitution* - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Education Reform - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Legalize (and Tax) Vice - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Obama World vs. Cheney World - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- National Rifle Association v. Chicago (McDonald v. Chicago) Oral Arguments* - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Reconciling Liberty and Progressive Government - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Obama in the Middle East - A Respectful, Rational Voice - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Second Amendment Incorporation Update - Seventh Circuit Decision - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Strong versus Weak Judging - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Drawing the Line on the Obama Administration's National Security Practices - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Supreme Court Amicus Brief in McDonald v. Chicago - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- McDonald v. Chicago Amicus Brief - Volokh Conspiracy Link - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Healthcare Reform - Voices of Reason from Senators Wyden & Bennett - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Time to Legalize Drugs - Sensible WaPo Article - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Article in William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal: Rescuing the Fourteenth Amendment Privileges or Immunities Clause - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Just Do It - Obama Needs Backbone for Meaningful Healthcare Reform, a la FDR - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Nordyke v. King Rehearing - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Huge News - Supreme Court Grants Certiorari in McDonald v. Chicago re: Privileges or Immunities - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Obama Needs to Take Stands on Principle - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Kudos to Harry Reid for Including Public Option in Proposed Health Care Bill - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Free Radicals - Individual Efforts Can Change the World - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Destroy the Filibuster - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- McDonald v. Chicago - Petitioner's Brief - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Something on Which We Can All Agree - Less Government in Criminal Justice - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Obama Approach to Governing; Afghanistan Policy - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- McDonald v. Chicago - Law Professors' Amicus Brief - December 15th, 2009 [December 15th, 2009]
- Senate Passes Health Care Insurance Reform - Reflections - December 25th, 2009 [December 25th, 2009]
- "Radicals In Their Own TIme" - Introduction & Selected Excerpts - January 1st, 2010 [January 1st, 2010]
- Terrific WaPo Farewell Column by Ellen Goodman - January 2nd, 2010 [January 2nd, 2010]
- Same-Sex Marriage Case in California - January 20th, 2010 [January 20th, 2010]
- Health Care; Corporate Speech Case - January 23rd, 2010 [January 23rd, 2010]
- McDonald v. Chicago - Essay in Cardozo Law Review de novo Online Journal - January 29th, 2010 [January 29th, 2010]
- Another Response to Citizens United: Remove Supreme Court Appellate Jurisdiction - February 11th, 2010 [February 11th, 2010]
- Olympics Idealism - March 1st, 2010 [March 1st, 2010]
- Framers Believed in Virtuous (ie, Humane) Government - March 21st, 2010 [March 21st, 2010]
- McDonald v. Chicago - Yesterday's Oral Argument - March 22nd, 2010 [March 22nd, 2010]
- Radicals in Their Own Time: Four Hundred Years of Struggle for Liberty and Equal Justice in America - May 21st, 2010 [May 21st, 2010]
- McDonald v. Chicago decision - October 11th, 2010 [October 11th, 2010]
- OpEd on McDonald v Chicago Case - June/July 2010 - October 11th, 2010 [October 11th, 2010]
- New Blog Format - October 11th, 2010 [October 11th, 2010]
- New Book - Radicals in Their Own Time - February 14th, 2011 [February 14th, 2011]
- Liberty Property Trust Hosts First Quarter 2012 Results Conference Call - March 31st, 2012 [March 31st, 2012]
- Liberty Property Trust Announces First Quarter 2012 Results - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Liberty Energy Announces Creation of Advisory Board and Appointment of Its First Member - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Liberty Tire Recycling, Keep Atlanta Beautiful and City of Atlanta Tire Commission Join Forces for Large-Scale Tire ... - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Liberty Bowl set for afternoon kick New Year's Eve - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Liberty Bowl Announces Date and Time - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Liberty ship sinking remembered - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Liberty Union searching for girls basketball coach - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- How to Do a Liberty - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- Review: The "Liberty I" Ultra Compact Compound Bow vs. "Razor Edge" and "Slingbow" - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- Heavy Rain in Liberty City: Episode 1 (Grand Theft Auto IV Machinima) - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- Jordan Page "Liberty" (Acoustic Version) - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty - Cinematic Trailer - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- China 9 Liberty 37 - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- Liberty`s Kids: #05 "Midnight Ride" (1/2) - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- Madness - The Liberty of Norton Folgate Live - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- I Pledge to Join Young Americans for Liberty - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- Steve Vai - Liberty - Video - April 30th, 2012 [April 30th, 2012]
- North Liberty fire chief: Email blasting staff was meant to motivate - May 4th, 2012 [May 4th, 2012]
- FCC dismisses Liberty Media request for control of SiriusXM - May 5th, 2012 [May 5th, 2012]
- Liberty FCC Request to Control Sirius XM Radio Rejected - May 5th, 2012 [May 5th, 2012]
- FCC rejects Liberty Media bid for Sirius XM control - May 7th, 2012 [May 7th, 2012]
- Liberty Rocket Targets 2015 - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- Liberty boosts SiriusXM stake above 45% - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- One Liberty Properties, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2012 Results - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- Liberty to boost stake in Sirius XM to 45 pct - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- ATK Announces Complete Liberty System to Provide Commercial Crew Access - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- Penn Liberty Wealth Advisors Expands - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- Romney Woos Evangelicals at Liberty University - May 13th, 2012 [May 13th, 2012]
- Liberty opener moved to MSG due to hockey game - May 13th, 2012 [May 13th, 2012]
- Romney Defends Marriage and Faith in Liberty University Speech - May 13th, 2012 [May 13th, 2012]
- Romney Speaks At Anti-Gay Liberty University Alongside Baptist Billionaire - May 13th, 2012 [May 13th, 2012]
- Liberty Center girls, Archbold boys reign - May 13th, 2012 [May 13th, 2012]
- Romney Courts Christian Conservatives at Liberty U - May 13th, 2012 [May 13th, 2012]