Incorporating a wide array of luxury shops to suit every style, Seven Dials is London’s unique, premium London village showcasing the capital’s premium fashion, grooming, art and lifestyle, food and drink offerings. LUX went to visit the area to explore the vast array of unique shops and venues, looking to discover the personalised offerings that are on offer in the seven streets.
Comprised of seven interconnecting streets, the wonderful location that is Seven Dials was bathing in sunshine when LUX went to explore and take in the wonderful designs and personalised accessories that the area has to offer.
There was no better place to start than at Tredwells, a delightful offering from renowned chef Marcus Wareing, and his protegee, Chef Patron Chantelle Nicholson. The restaurant delivers contemporary British cooking and fine cuisine and is a delightful aspect of Seven Dials. Welcomed by friendly staff, there was a relaxing atmosphere when entering the venue, and drinks, menus and food were all delivered expertly. Opting for a recommended starter and a main, the food was exquisite, with words not doing it justice. The cocktail bar is an added bonus when visiting the venue, and the non-alcoholic cocktails went down a treat, offering up some surprising but delicious flavours. It was a very enjoyable experience, with the food and service complementing each other to start the day off perfectly.
Drenched in sunshine, Seven Dials looked splendid, with the sun beating down off the shop windows, highlighting the beauty of the historic area and venues. The first shop that LUX ventured into was Dinny Hall, a store showcasing personalised and signature hand crafted pieces. Personally involved in every one of her designs and products, Dinny is a creative force in the jewellery sector, and this particular store allows clients to hand pick their favourite designs, with the option of engraving them, or even adding their own personal touches. The store’s iconic Pinky rings are a truly unique statement piece that can be engraved, and staff also offer piercing workshops and exhibitions, highlighting the vast array of choice and jewellery that customers can choose from. A highlight was a locket which opened up, allowing a person to store a treasured memory, whether it be of a loved one or a pet, or something which meant a great deal to them.
Directly opposite Dinny Hall is another jewellery store which could not be more different, although equally prestigious in both pedigree and clientele. Tatty Devine is an independent British company designing and micro-manufacturing original jewellery in Britain. Boasting truly unique designs, you can find their products splashed across the front pages of high-profile fashion magazines, highlighting the magnificent creations that the store produces. A key aspect of the jewellery is its ability to allow people to express themselves, showcasing their own personalities in fun and distinctive ways. What really caught the eye, however, was the fun and playful acrylic jewellery, showcased distinctly throughout the store. Allowing them to truly express their personality, customers can design their own personalised Name Necklace or Speech Bubble Necklace and watch Tatty Devine’s skilled team make, laser cut and hand finish it on the spot! However, selecting a design is not as easy as it sounds, with some customers spending hours in the store personalising the right design, such is the vast array of choice.
Perhaps an essential accessory to go alongside all that luxurious jewellery is perfume. Looking and smelling nice is central to the wellbeing of any connoisseur, and Le Labo play a vital part in this respect. The renowned perfume house has become iconic for its handmade perfumes and home scents, all of which have been developed without the use of animal testing. Attracting various customers from across the globe, Le Labo uses only the highest quality raw ingredients to create unique scents. LUX was truly spoilt for choice when picking and choosing from the unisex perfumes, and the strong scents emanating from the bottles, as well as candles which could be personally engraved, truly helps customers to define their own scent.
The next venture into one of the other streets in Seven Dials was an experience of seismic proportions. Combining technology, as well as exhibitions of music and art (currently Ralph Steadman), with a screening and listening space, Sonos is a wildly impressive store, with all members of the Sonos team boasting expert knowledge in the products that they are offering. Demonstrating the true ability and power of its products, Sonos had LUX mastering the art of Amazon’s Alexa, as the ‘mini home’ style listening booth had LUX’s choice of music blaring from the bedroom, kitchen and living room. Choosing your own personal music, Sonos allows you to throw your very own party, especially as the Seven Dials store stocks its brand new ‘One’ smart speaker; the first Sonos product with built-in voice control from Alexa.
Following on from exploring the mesmerising technology produced by Sonos, it was time to experience the new face of male beauty; BEAST. Offering a curated selection of the finest men’s products from across the globe, BEAST is the only store of its kind, bringing together over 80 premium brands spanning body, hair, shave, face, and fragrance, making it perfect for any customer. Identifying itself with its own image, BEAST’s store and website mirror the same merchandised structure. Interestingly, looking to capitalise on its success, the team at BEAST are exploring the opportunity of bringing in other offerings, including the idea of bringing in an in-house barber to provide an even greater grooming experience.
What good would the face of male beauty be without the fashion to match? Across from BEAST is Duke & Dexter, a British born footwear label specialising in premium loafers. Giving customers the option to customise their unique footwear, the shoes are designed in London and handmade in Sheffield. With the fashion industry seeing an increasing trend in initialled loafers, the label is reaping the rewards of its bespoke bar where customers can design their own completely personalised pair of Duke & Dexter footwear from start to finish, ranging from initials to pictures. Just in time for Summer, the business is also releasing its Pastel Collection, perfect for a wide demographic of customers who are all aiming to look splendid in the sunshine. Maintaining a summer glow, these pastel designs are perfect for all conditions and events, whilst their subtlety also appeals to a wider audience, allowing people to exude confidence when walking in public.
Next up, LUX had the honour of examining the whole Brooks England collection in the B1866 flagship store. Established in 1866, the brand has grown from a small workshop to a byword for quality craftmanship. Offering a selection of stylish, modern and urban bicycles, saddles, accessories, helmets, backpacks and bags for discerning customers, the fascinating leather backpacks are incredibly appeasing on the eye. Clients of the store are able to choose and personalise their own saddles to suit their own comfort, and the extensive array of options sees the store able to cater to all customers.
A short walk down another of the streets is style personified in the shape of Nixon, a premium, global watch and accessories brand. The Neal Street location in Seven Dials offers custom-built watches and accessories, all of which are sold in the best boardsport, fashion and specialist retailers all around the world. Giving customers the ultimate choice, the Seven Dials store features the popular Nixon customisation bar, allowing customers to create their very own one-of-a-kind watch. Choosing from the clock face to the straps, the skilled staff at the customisation bar even offer the option of engraving your personalised watch, whether it be for yourself or someone else. This additional space also gives Nixon the opportunity to highlight its limited-edition offerings, including its new, premium Swiss-made automatic RSVP collection.
There was no better way to sign off a truly fascinating day than stepping inside Choccywoccydoodah’s jewel box of colour and creativity at the Shorts Garden store. Capturing the true community style that surrounds the area, the cheerful and hospitable staff take great delight in providing guests with fantastic chocolate based treats. Inundated with requests, everywhere you look there is chocolate in sight, and the venue also provides cakes for events, notably weddings, all with a lovely chocolate theme. LUX went downstairs to find the intimate Bar du Chocolat, enjoying a tasty hot chocolate whilst taking in the ambience and delightful chocolate décor.
Capping off a wonderful day, LUX left the area realising that Seven Dials is a mesmerising system of streets connecting a vibrant community full of fashion, jewellery and bespoke designs, alongside some tremendous food and drink offerings.
Excitingly, this was the least that Seven Dials has to offer, as on Saturday 23rd June, from 12-6pm, there will be a Seven Dials Soundtrack event which will showcase even more of the area’s natural beauty.
This unique event is part of the Mayor of London’s ‘Sounds Like London’ campaign. To showcase the music at the heart and soul of this historic city, the area will host a one-day, traffic-free music and arts festival on Saturday 23 June 2018 called Seven Dials Soundtrack. The festival is part of a campaign which is designed to champion London’s world-class music offering, and this day will see visitors from all around the world experience the vibrant district of Seven Dials, as they are treated to a full day of musical entertainment.
As part of the celebration, the focal point of Seven Dials, the iconic sundial, will be covered in grass and beanbags for visitors to sit and enjoy the open-air stage, and listen to an amazing line-up on the open-air stage, including music, spoken word artists and performances. The full line-up will be announced very soon.
Furthermore, with the festival catering to guests of all ages, the day will also feature a bar from Hawksmoor with a free cocktail, as well as eco-friendly and biodegradable glitter face-painting from Gypsy Shrine, flash-mob performances from cult-hit festival choir Some Voices, a silent disco, a music tombola, and many more exciting activities.
Lastly, showcasing Seven Dials in all its glory, the surrounding retailers will be providing in-store activations and promotions at a range of Seven Dials destinations, including Ollie Quinn and Sonos.
If you would like to learn more about the intriguing network of seven streets nestled between Covent Garden and Soho, then please do visit www.sevendials.co.uk.
