Mary Portas - Queen of Frocks?

Having watched the television programme, Mary Queen of Frocks, I was eager to see whether or not the shop lived up to the high standards that Mary Portas has for the stores she usually works with. Portas has said that she wanted "high street that works for women, not girls" and so her store, situated in Bond Street's House of Fraser was aimed to be just that.

From a fashion point of view, the clothes worked well for the demographic it was aimed at. They appeared classic, whilst still maintaining a sense of being able to throw an outfit together in next to no time - or as the writing on the wall suggested, "ready in 10 minutes, looking hot." Standout piece was the long-sleeved leather dress, which looked like the perfect antidote to workwear dilemmas, whilst the animal print shift dress combined print and colour and made it look sophisticated.

Although the shop is generally a great effort on Portas' behalf, there are some flaws. Despite being for women and not girls, the interior has an overall youthful aesthetic; the Las Vegas style lighting may not connect to the older woman. Furthermore, the music playing throughout resembled that of a phone call being placed on hold. That being said, service (something that Portas is known for) was, as expected, faultless. The customer wouldn't feel neglected, nor hounded. All in all, I don't think Mary Portas has anything to worry about...just yet.