You need to be a subscriber to join the conversation. We don’t. Born and raised in New York, I reside in London. I built it and furnished it. If you want a £50,000 Chopard watch encrusted with diamonds, this is the place to come.But the new outlet is billed as luxury shopping for the ‘new normal’, and it’s spacious to accommodate social distancing.It’s a way for the firm to hold its blockbuster sales without crowds of bargain hunters tussling in the aisles: a no-no in this Covid era.But has Harrods sold out, turning itself into a green-and-gold version of TK Maxx?On opening day, the Outlet had a queue of more than 300 people, two hours ahead of 11am. Some of the bargains are currently available online, but not all, and these will be phased out over the next few weeks, a spokesperson tells me.I drooled over a green Chloe Aby Lock bag, a relative snip at £679 — well, when you consider it’s still being sold on other retailers’ sites at the full price of £1,160.Jess said Harrods Outlet isn't as luxurious as the main store, but definitely worth a visit. A specialised tea tailor, who makes you a custom tea blend according to your ‘taste profile’? However, the company wasn’t keen on letting us take pictures, perhaps because the ‘bargain basement’ vibe isn’t exactly in tune with the Harrods brand.When I visit on a Friday morning a week later, half an hour after opening time, there is no queue. Not being complacent has made us push the next barrier and create that next hurdle. No problem. I've held editorial roles at WWD,I'm a contributor for Forbes covering fashion, beauty, business, and lifestyle. And just because they want to win, they want it to look the best and they want it to look exceptionally good. FAQs. I've held editorial roles at WWD, InStyle, Lucky, and Cargo. CEO Talks: Michael Ward, Harrods’ Managing Director, on His Vision for the Retailer Ward, who tried — unsuccessfully — to step down last year, wants to make the store more experiential. My wife looks at me and said ‘How the hell did you do this because it literally a house on a cliff.’ As a sane person you would never have done it but actually its one of the most beautiful things. And we’ve been unapologetic about that.”Harrods is nearing the completion of a near-£300m renovation project, which kicked off in 2017.It has also landed exclusive deals with luxury brands such as Japanese skincare label Cle De Peau, which is fronted by actress Felicity Jones and sells anti-ageing creams for £520, and Patagonian perfumery Fueguia 1833, which creates fragrances inspired by South America and sell for up to £529 for a 100ml bottle.“We don’t do brands that just go down to Boots,” Ward says.“My biggest pain in life is having to go down to the beauty halls for my two daughters,” he says.Such are Ward’s ambitions for Harrods to become a major player in the beauty market that the department store has just opened its first standalone site outside London dedicated to beauty.The outlet in Essex’s Lakeside shopping centre is set to be followed by a second in Milton Keynes, with the potential for further shops to be added over time.Ward is using this opportunity to cash in on the burgeoning beauty market as rival department stores such as House of Fraser and Debenhams struggle to keep up with the demands of today’s fickle younger consumers.Beauty is also seen as the entry point into luxury, the first place customers come when they become comfortable with high spending, giving Harrods access to a broader range of consumers.“With the demise of Debenhams and House of Fraser into really not very pleasant places to shop, it meant there was a massive gap in the moment for the younger person to have really great quality beauty,” Ward says.“Harrods is unbelievably well placed to take advantage of that.”“Unless you continue to reinvent yourself, you become boring and average,” he says.“I don’t mean to be rude, but if I go into a shop on a high street, I think the only thing that they’re trained at is the great ability to turn in the opposite direction whenever you want attention.“You know, I always used to invest in retail companies on the basis of, why would I go and shop there?
Then onwards up the glittering escalators.Jess said Harrods in Knightsbridge (pictured) has a reputation for sourcing absolutely anything for its gazillionaire clienteleFinally, The Haircut: resplendent on a special mahogany child’s chair in a green Harrods gown, with the attendant fussing around me, I was in heaven.In the 1990s, they even had a ‘dress code’: no riff raff was the general message. Other shoppers are a typical Westfield weekday mix of young mums with children, cool twenty-somethings, and tourists.Jess revealed the staff at Harrods Outlet have been apparently recruited from existing Harrods store personnel. And of course we bought everything from Harrods. We have temporarily closed our Knightsbridge store. The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful. As Michael Ward, managing director of Harrods, puts it: ‘Harrods Outlet was born out of the need to make bold, innovative decisions in the face of an unprecedented situation.’The Knightsbridge store was the scene of my inaugural encounter with ‘luxury’. I met a friend for coffee and a mooch, in the hopes of scoring a Chloe bag.I was dressed in my finest for the occasion — Preen midi-dress, Jimmy Choo ankle boots and red Chanel lippy — and ready to do battle with the glamorous bargain hunters of Knightsbridge.After an exhausting few hours (a heavily discounted Chloe wallet was all I could stretch to in the end) we staggered home to recover. Harrods added the clip ‘in no way reflects the concern and dedication that Michael Ward (left) has put towards ensuring that Harrods colleagues are protected from the impacts of coronavirus’ The video, which was posted to social media by the Harrods chief’s … Born and raised in New York, I reside in London. Read our community guidelines in full If you strive for it, most things are achievable.