There are several Penhaligon’s shops in London. The one you’re most likely to encounter as a tourist in central London is the Regent Street branch.
The Penhaligon’s aesthetic is one of Edwardian discretion; a Wodehouse Duchess would be quite at home among the silver accoutrements and vintage bottle designs. Achieving this kind of effect on one of London’s busiest shopping streets is a challenge. Thousands of tourists crowd Regent Street every day, shuffling between the frenetic hubs of Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Circus, and pretty much wrecking any hint of antique elegance.
The Penhaligon’s shop does a pretty good job of persuading you that you’ve stepped back a century or two, with gilded cabinets stacked with apothecary bottles and giant factices, and an artful sense of shadowed corners…
