London’s historic Fortnum & Mason has been crowned the world’s best department store in a comprehensive new study analyzing over 46,000 customer reviews. The prestigious Piccadilly establishment leads a strong showing for London, with three of the capital’s stores ranking in the global top five.
The study, conducted by CouponPi, evaluated 50 of the world’s most famous department stores based on customer ratings and sentiment analysis. Fortnum & Mason achieved a perfect score of 10/10, with an impressive average rating of 4.6 out of 5 and the highest positive sentiment score at 62.1%.
Founded as a grocery store by a former footman to Queen Anne, Fortnum & Mason is now renowned for its luxury food offerings and iconic hampers. Customers particularly praised its status as a “tea drinkers’ paradise” and described visits as “epicurean adventures.”
Mexico City’s El Palacio de Hierro claimed second place with a score of 9.6, while London’s Liberty and Selfridges took third and fifth places respectively. Liberty, famous for its Tudor-revival architecture and avant-garde fashion, was notably praised as “the most beautiful department store of all time” by reviewers.
Dublin’s Arnotts, Ireland’s oldest and largest department store, secured fourth place, with reviewers particularly commending its exceptional customer service. The store, now owned by Selfridges Group, achieved an overall score of 8.9.
The top ten was rounded out by prestigious names including Paris’s Printemps Haussmann, Singapore’s Takashimaya Shopping Centre, and New York’s Bloomingdale’s and Saks Fifth Avenue, highlighting the global competition in luxury retail.
The rankings come at a crucial time for department stores as they face increasing competition from online retail, highlighting the importance of creating distinctive in-store experiences to attract customers. The success of these top-ranked stores suggests that combining historical heritage with modern luxury service remains a winning formula in retail.
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