Burberry fashions a frenzy
How reassuring it must be for a yet-to-open retailer to have customers beating down the door for a hint of an opening date. Burberry, that most iconic of British retailers, had such luck ahead of the opening of its flagship store in London late last year, a source revealed to Diary this week. “Every day Chinese and Japanese shoppers were banging at the hoardings desperate to know when it was opening,” he said. “It was mad.” Considering the retailer posted a 21% increase in retail revenue in the three months to June last week, for which the buoyant economies in Asia were largely responsible, our eager- beaver shoppers must have sat tight.
Rees shall not be moved
City of London chief planning officer Peter Rees has long been an opponent of “dark flats” in the capital – properties bought by overseas investors and seldom occupied. Now Rees is doing his bit to ensure one of the swankiest new blocks on his patch keeps the lights on. Next month he moves into the Heron , Gerald Ronson’s 36-floor, 285-unit tower in the heart of the Square Mile. “I will be living in mine seven days a week,” says Rees. “I am doing my bit to try to mop up this excess of supply.”
Rupert’s diary mix-up
There has been a lot of interest in recent years over how much editorial influence Rupert Murdoch exercises over his stable of newspapers. But last week it became clear that if he does have a say, it obviously doesn’t reach as far as The Times’ Diary section. The Thunderer relaunched its esteemed Diary feature on 2 July under the name TMS, in honour of its home at Thomas More Square . Sadly, it looks as though the art desk might have to redesign the section sooner than expected as it was confirmed last week that the paper, together with the rest of News UK, will be moving to the Baby Shard next year. If only they had read Estates Gazette in early June when we broke the story of the move. Presumably they rejected calling the page BS.
Sweep with fame
Speaking of those in the real estate sector who have had a brush with 90s fame, Diary has discovered that Louisa Woodbridge, Grosvenor’s London estate head of sales and lettings – commercial and resi, once appeared on guilty pleasure show Supermarket Sweep. Sadly, Woodbridge’s team lost, but no doubt getting to ?meet the fabulous Dale Winton made ?up for that.
Srudents in hamster jam
Students are not known for their cleanliness. Or their attention to detail. But a hamster in a microwave? The abandoned critter, renamed Mouse, was found at Unite’s swanky Woburn Place student accommodation in Bloomsbury during end-of-term checks. Having escaped death once, Mouse was still in peril as a member of the maintenance team wanted to take him home to feed to his pet reptiles. Kind-hearted office assistant Sarah Holland, 22, intervened and offered Mouse a new home. The company collected a huge 40 tonnes of unclaimed property and donations of unwanted items including iPads, Ugg boots and statues as of the end of last year. It has given the items to the British Heart Foundation and Cancer Research.
The talented Mr Brown
Doing a little reminiscing over the 90s music scene on You Tube, Diary came across a familiar face – Alex Brown, who has launched central London agency ABRE and is a former chairman of the West End Office Agents Society, He set up Brown Bear Records in 1993 and had records in the chart, including Supernatural Love and That’s What It Takes. YouTube hits for the singles are 853 and 657. Let’s see if they soar as a result of Diary’s publicity.
