I went to visit the Oxfam Curiosity Shop in Selfridges at the weekend (2nd April). I thought it was great so I want to get my one negative point out of the way; it was really hard to find! I have to confess I am not a fan of the experience of shopping in huge department stores any way. I think it is fantastic that Selfridges are supporting such a great cause, but they could do with making a bit more of a song and dance about it. There seemed to be no signage and none of their staff seemed to know anything about it - one lady advised me it was on the second floor which led me on a while goose chase but I am glad I persevered!
The pop-up shop definitely lived up to my expectations and I really enjoyed my visit. I love the way the selection of designer and vintage clothes were displayed and the whole design of the space balanced fitting in to the high-end store with the charm of a charity shop well. The attention to detail made the whole thing a great experience; the individual hand written card tags on the clothes and with QR codes taking you to information about the project were my favourite touch.
The project is led by some well known celebs and this endorsement works very well; it seems that the people involved, such as Annie Lennox and Jane Shepherdson, are really instrumental in its development and fit well with its ethos. They certainly haven't tagged the celeb endorsement on to the project solely to get publicity.
I have been thinking for a while about an interview I read in Third Sector in December with Thomas Schultz-Jagow, Director of Communications at Oxfam GB. He says that Oxfam are looking to establish themselves as a lifestyle brand (Read full article here). Whilst the comments on the Third Sector website are pretty dismissive about this I think there is something to be said for the space between consumer brands and charities. You can't ignore the growth of social enterprise and of for-profit companies whose popularity is a result of their ethical and social credentials (such as TOMS shoes and Innocent Smoothies which I have previously mentioned/featured). If this is the route Oxfam are looking to explore then this project certainly won't damage their progress.
The core elements of this project: fashion, celebrity endorsement and its temporary nature, will definitely draw a Gen Y audience but in fact the appeal is quite broad.
The Oxfam Curiosity Shop is open until 10th April. It can be found in the Ultralounge on the Lower Ground Floor of Selfridges, Oxford Street. Find out more here or if you can't make it, why not have a look at the online auction here. Enjoy!
