I pity the fool

‘I pity the fool forced to buy more products than he wants to,’ said retail design giant Fitch’s Simon Threadkell to BDP’s Stephen Anderson this morning at a retail seminar at New London Architecture. Such was Threadkell’s response to Anderson’s anguished question, ‘Is this whole retail-based consumerist philosophy sustainable, though?’ which he uttered at the end of an hour-long seminar about developments in retail design. It was a sublime moment of existential self-doubt that enlivened an otherwise standard chat about current retail trends such as augmented reality, brand provenance and handmade aesthetics. Well done, Simon and Stephen. Now get on with your work.