Mary Portas

Founding Partner/Creative Director

Yellowdoor

Retail marketing guru Mary Portas is quite possibly one of the UK’s foremost authorities on retail and brand communication. Previously the Creative Director of Harvey Nichols, Mary repositioned the Harvey Nichols brand into the world renowned store and restaurant group it is today.

Mary’s foresight and unique knowledge of trends and consumer markets prompted her to launch Yellowdoor in 1997 when she saw a need for integrated and creative brand communication in the retail, fashion, luxury and beauty sectors. Under Mary’s guidance, Yellowdoor have created category challenging campaigns for a wide range of brands on the high street including Clarks, Louis Vuitton, Oasis, Swarovski, Dunhill, Boden, Thomas Pink, Miss Selfridge, and Patek Philippe.

Mary regularly travels around the world and frequently lectures on the theme of branding and retail. Mary’s first book ‘Windows – The art of retail display’ published by Thames and Hudson in five languages, quickly became the worldwide authority on the subject and in 2005 Mary was commissioned to write a weekly feature in The Saturday Telegraph Magazine reviewing the state of the nation’s shops. The success of the column will lead to a National Shop Awards in 2006, which Mary will spearhead.