Selfridges to overhaul women’s designwear

The department store, which spent about £10m on the launch of the 35,000 sq ft Shoe Galleries which opened in October, will use the same architect, Jamie Fobert, to overhaul the remainder of the second floor of the flagship London store in the next year.

It is the first strategy to be implemented by newly promoted Sebastian Manes, who became buying director of womenswear, accessories and kidswear on February 1, following the promotion of Anne Pitcher to managing director.

Pitcher’s role as head of buying was split between Manes, who was previously director of accessories, jewellery, lingerie and swimwear, and David Walker-Smith who became buying director of menswear, beauty, and home and leisure.

Billed as the world’s largest footwear department and three years in development, the Shoe Galleries features six galleries, 11 boutiques, more than 100,000 pairs of shoes and 4,400 styles from more than 150 brands.

Manes said the department had outperformed expectations to sell 10,000 pairs a week compared with a target of about 8,500. He declined to give sales figures. “We will change the entire second floor,” he said. “Women’s designwear will change in the course of the next 12 months.”

The second floor will continue to house women’s designer or designer bridge brands and Manes will bring in “some newness”, which will start to be seen within six months. The details are yet to be confirmed.

Manes said Selfridges planned to roll out elements of the Shoe Galleries to its regional stores in Birmingham, Manchester and the Trafford Centre. He did not rule out the possibility of a similar treatment for kidswear, which now falls under his remit.