Why it won
Trailblazer recognises a retailer whose work, influence and approach to physical retail made an exceptional impression on the Creative Retail Awards. There is no shortlist and no entry process. The award exists to recognise a business that shows the ambition, imagination and continual evolution that define progressive retail.
With a history stretching back more than three centuries, Fortnum & Mason could rely on heritage alone. Instead, it keeps showing how an established, instantly recognisable retailer can evolve, experiment and stay creatively relevant without losing the identity that makes it distinctive.
Its Piccadilly windows remain an important part of London's visual retail landscape, combining storytelling, craftsmanship and theatrical visual merchandising to create moments that go far beyond product display. Inside the store, the same thinking runs through the interiors, hospitality and experiential spaces, all designed to encourage discovery, interaction and dwell time. Beyond Piccadilly, the business has taken its identity into new formats and locations while keeping the character of the brand.
What makes Fortnum & Mason particularly notable is the consistency running through everything it does. Windows, interiors, hospitality, product and customer experience are not treated as separate disciplines, but as one recognisable retail world.
That approach was reflected across this year's awards, where Fortnum & Mason won in two categories and was Highly Commended in a third. Trailblazer looks beyond any single project, recognising a retailer that continues to show what physical retail can be: a destination, an experience and a platform for exceptional creativity.
“We were absolutely delighted to pick up three awards at the Creative Retail Awards. The one we’re particularly proud of is the Trailblazer Award. It was a real team effort and a wonderful recognition of the passion, creativity and hard work that goes into everything we do. It was also a great excuse for a fun night out, celebrating with colleagues and spending time with some of the most creative people in retail.”
The work
Fortnum & Mason's Piccadilly windows were recognised three times in 2026.
A very different use of the window space, playing with perspective and lighting and focusing on the simple joy of the season. Each set is full of tiny details, scenic painting and carefully forced perspective.
The windows were well received by customers, by colleagues inside the business and across the industry as a fresh approach to window display.
Fortnum's asked seven artists and makers, each with a passion for sustainability, to create a resourceful animal from waste generated by the Piccadilly store.
The hyena was made from old uniforms, sample tea towels and bags for life. The elephant was covered in out of date Christmas brochures, the bowerbirds came from old biscuit tins and the dung beetle from mouldings, nails and sawdust from the prop workshop. The octopus used oyster shells and tin cans from hospitality events, the hermit crab old Fortnum's boxes, and the vulture scrap metal from the store's previous atrium.
When the windows came out, the sculptures were gifted to the Royal Docks Centre for Sustainability, where they are now on permanent display.
Eight enchanted Christmas windows, each a fantastical world of hand-carved and hand-painted creatures taken from Fortnum's Christmas packaging.
Throughout every scene, the store's red-coated staff were reimagined as mice, polishing gemstones, turning delicate handles and pouring snow from eau de nil buckets, with intricate lighting and gentle movement bringing each window to life.
The record
First shortlisted in 2019, Fortnum & Mason has become one of the most consistent names at the awards, winning in each of the last three years.
On the night
Fortnum & Mason collected Window Display and Sustainable Display before returning to the stage to accept Trailblazer.
2026 winners
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