LONDON — It seems everyone is getting in the spirit of sports ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, even Selfridges.
The luxury department store has erected a 40-foot Grecian-inspired climbing column just outside its London store for six weeks.
The GorpGirls, a female collective that champions women in the outdoors, were the first to climb the column.
The GorpGirls climbing the column.
David Parry
The column can be climbed by a group of up to six people at a time and is a reflection of the indoor sport climbing category in this year’s Olympics. Indoor sports was first introduced at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and has seen a surge in popularity.
The column is part of Selfridges’ larger Sportopia campaign for the summer, which will include sports-themed pop-ups and activities over the next few weeks.
In June, Lacoste‘s green hue took over Selfridges. The French luxury sports brand placed itself on the second floor atrium and transformed the Alto by San Carlo rooftop restaurant and terrace into an immersive space called Le Club Lacoste.
The Selfridges climbing column.
David Parry
On the terrace, a special drinks menu for the restaurant was designed, taking its inspiration from tennis with cocktails taking on names such as René, Cucumber Deuce and Match Point Spritz.
The brand installed digital screens on the terrace for visitors to catch live tennis games from the 2024 Wimbledon Championships.
Lacoste even decorated the space with archival images from the brand’s tennis past, from founder René Lacoste’s tennis career to the first Lacoste polo.