Stumped by what to get friends and family for the holidays? There’s a Robb Report Ultimate Gift Guide for that, but perusing the shelves of a major luxury retailer can help, too, we suppose. In Harrods and Neiman Marcus, you have two of the finest stores that have long histories of pulling out all the stops for the festive season. Which is more worthy of your big December splurge?
Harrods |
Neiman Marcus |
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FOUNDED BY Henry Charles Harrod in 1849. It was originally a grocery store—which goes a long way in explaining the first floor’s culinary Disneyland. 
Charles Henry Harrod. Supplied |
FOUNDED BY Herbert Marcus, his sister Carrie Marcus Neiman and her husband, A. L. Neiman, in 1907. They passed on an opportunity to invest in the barely-on-the-radar Coca-Cola brand to make it happen. Whoops.
A. L. and Carrie Neiman. Supplied |
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MOTTO Omnia, Omnibus, Ubique, or “All Things, for All People, Everywhere.” A better version might be Omnia, Divitibus, Ubique, or “All Things, for the Affluent, Everywhere.” |
MOTTO Its most notable slogan is its holiday one, which changes every year. For 2021, it’s “Celebrate Big, Love Even Bigger,” which is corporate-speak for “All Things, for the Affluent, Everywhere.” |
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CREATURE FEATURE An Egyptian cobra guarded a pair of $120,000 Rene Caovilla diamond-encrusted shoe in 2007. (Snake not included with purchase.)
The Egyptian cobra with the diamond-studded shoes. Alamy |
CREATURE FEATURE One of the brand’s first Christmas-catalog offerings was a live Black Angus steer with, erm, an accompanying roast-beef cart.
The Black Angus bull. Adobe Stock |
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DID IT FIRST Installation of an escalator, or “moving staircase” as it was referred to then, in England. The year was 1898; traumatized customers were offered brandy and smelling salts to calm their nerves once they reached the top. |
DID IT FIRST In 1984, Neiman’s became the first luxury retailer to have a customer-loyalty program. Spend $10,000 a year and a concierge will book dinners and arrange travel for you. |
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WEIRDEST THING SOLD A “Welcome Present for Friends at the Front” during WWI. The kit contained cocaine, morphine and syringes.
The Harrods WWI Kit. Supplied |
WEIRDEST THING SOLD His-and-hers mummy cases in its 1971 Christmas catalog. When they arrived at the Florida store, the manager found a genuine corpse inside one.
Mummy cases offered by Neiman Marcus. Supplied |
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PIVOT Shuttered its pet department in 2014 to make way for a women’s fashion floor, trading a pet spa, diamond-studded collars and live animals for skirts and dresses. |
PIVOT Shuttered its NYC store in Hudson Yards after just 16 months there, despite having signed a 50-year lease. Turns out, plans change. (Read: Chapter 11.) |
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GOOD EATS The sprawling food hall includes selections of chocolate wine, sushi and plenty of caviar. A bell rings every half hour to signal the arrival of fresh bread.
Caviar offered at Harrods. Adobe Stock |
GOOD EATS
In keeping with its carnivore theme, you can buy whole turkeys at Neiman’s online store.
The herb-roasted turkey. Alison Marras/Unsplash |
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SANTA SHOWING Barring a global pandemic, kids can meet Santa at the in-store Christmas grotto… if their parents have spent $2,700 or more at Harrods during the year. Ah, the sweet spirit of the season.
Santa Claus at Harrods. LM Otero/AP Images |
SANTA SHOWING Kids can schedule a virtual meetup with Santa for 2021. Like the rest of the working-from- home world, St. Nick will call in via Zoom.
Santa Claus on a video call with a child. Alamy |
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AKA The Londonist referred to the store as a “louche palace for the bolshy” in 2015. |
AKA Foes and fans alike call it Needless Markup. |
