New York City’s department stores have decked the halls for the holiday season, with their window displays spreading joy to New Yorkers and visitors alike.
“The holiday windows really embody the spirit of the season in a way that really captures nostalgia and excitement for a lot of people,” Aaron Romero, associate creative director of visual experience for Bloomingdale’s, told The Post.
Holiday window displays are a year-round process. At the start of the year, a theme is chosen and a plan is devised, then they’re constructed until the day they’re unveiled, David Hoey, senior director of visual presentation for Bergdorf Goodman, explained.
“It’s the most fun work in the world,” he told The Post.
People travel from all over the world just to see these window displays, demonstrating that they are more than a display of product — they offer an experience. “It contributes to the fabric of the city,” Romero said.
This year, Bloomingdale’s is taking a trip to the Land of Oz with its displays, which debuted Nov. 13 with an unveiling hosted by “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo.
Meanwhile, Bergdorf is home for the holidays, showcasing all the best parts of New York. Over in Herald Square, Macy’s is stocking up on gifts with the help of their Gift Guide Elves. And Nordstrom is bringing “The Blizz” to 57th Street.
The best part is, you’ll experience something different at every department store. As Hoey said, “No two stores have the same style.”
Read on for all the exciting details on New York City’s beloved holiday tradition.
Bergdorf Goodman is paying homage to their home street with “Toast of the Town,” which celebrates the 200th anniversary of Fifth Avenue. Each of the windows at both the women’s and men’s stores showcases Fifth Avenue iconography in different colors and is full of immaculate details.
Hoey said the windows will appear to be a collage from afar, but up close, visitors can appreciate all kinds of “micro details.”
“We want the windows to be interesting either from across the street or right up close,” Hoey told The Post. “We design them so that they’ll be interesting in any format or at any distance.”
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“We want the windows to be interesting either from across the street or right up close,” Hoey told The Post. “We design them so that they’ll be interesting in any format or at any distance.”
Green leaves, creatures, statues and foliage fill the window all about the parks. “We have a scale model of the Washington Square arch in there, but you can barely see it because we have so many things in front of it,” Hoey shared.
A blue window highlights iconic landmarks including the Empire State Building, the Flatiron Building and the Plaza. The New York Public Library gets its own red window, complete with a scale model of the entrance and the recognizable lions. And of course, there’s a window about shopping on Fifth Avenue, specifically at Bergdorf — “a store doing a window about itself,” Hoey said. At the centerpiece is a window centered on yellow taxicabs, with a collage of cab parts that have been “transformed into a big starburst with a very exciting light show,” Hoey said. “That’s especially good at night.”
“The light show is so exciting that we hope that that alone will draw people up to our stretch of Fifth Avenue,” Hoey shared. “Over the last couple of decades, at Bergdorf Goodman, we seem to have developed a following, and we know that people are excited to see what we do every year. We want to live up to the expectations.”
“Toast of the Town” will be on display until Jan. 6.
754 Fifth Ave., at 58th Street
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Something wicked is happening at Bloomingdale’s this holiday season with the “Wicked Good Holiday” windows, filled with animatronics and props from antique stores and estate sales.