If ever there was an award for places that absolutely smash Christmas each year, Annabel’s would take the top prize every single time because I am mesmerised by what they do with the front of the private members cub, smack in the middle of Mayfair where precious few would deign to enter.
Bear in mind that this not a shop front therefore it has no ware to push other than its exclusivity, but it will not be left out of a moment and the moment is Christmas, and what does it do? Dress up its entire façade to the delight of everyone passing by even if you are a grinch. This year it’s a hot air balloon that looks like it is about to lift off, if you recall that scene from UP… it kinda reminds me of that. Magical places and adventures await leaving our cares in 2023 where they firmly belong; in 2023.
It is a message of home and goodwill, in addition to being a crowd pleaser; Annabel’s is a private members club in Mayfair, it does not admit the Joes and Joanna publics off the street, but it can also bring them in at a distance, entice them with the fantasy of the world inside, allow the mind to roam and imagine what delights and secrets await within the hallowed doors. When you consider all these things and the fact that it is not a store pushing its wares on passers-by, or maybe it is with that façade and the many splendid façades over the years, but let’s face it does not need to, because if you know Annabel’s you simply know, this is a brilliant, brilliant display that will slow traffic down and crowd the footpath opposite but who cares, this is a delight.
An utter, utter delight.