Another Halloween has been BOO!-ted out of the door and Christmas has landed at Lavenders of Covent Garden and Whittingtons, both located in the Flower Market at New Covent Garden. Known for their extensive and unique range of décor and sundries, each November sees both wholesalers transform into winter wonderlands with their range of festive lines.
"Trade has hit the ground running and we're already full of festive spirit and very busy," says Lavenders' salesperson Trish Allen. "If you need a Christmas decoration of any size or colour, chances are we've got it in stock. Everything from trees to giant Santas and snowmen, we have every decoration you could ever want."
Lavenders' Christmas merchandise has replaced its extensive Halloween offer, which saw a frightening level of trade – the highest demand the team had ever seen. "Our Halloween assortment gets bigger every year, and all our stock flew out - especially the decorative broomsticks," jokes salesperson Frank Kempson. "Halloween is becoming a bigger event each year, and we sold lots and witches hats and pumpkins. New this year was anything related to the film Wicked, and that range was an absolute smash hit."
© New Covent Garden MarketAlan, Tanel and Frank are ready for Christmas at Lavenders
Now Lavenders and Whittingtons have given Christmas decorations pride of place. "We have a real mixture of clients, from florists and home designers to members of the public who all want to make an early start on their Christmas preparation and are buying from us earlier and earlier each year," says Manager Alan Hockley. "We've got a huge choice of wonderful Christmas products so it's difficult to predict what will be best-sellers, but the classic colours and styles are always popular every year."
© New Covent Garden Market
Here, Alan shares his personal top-five festive choices, all available now.
Christmas garlands. "We stock lots of sizes, with reds and greens always perennial favourites."
Traditional glass baubles. "The 10cm and 8cm sizes are the most popular," with purple also a trending choice this year, alongside the greens and reds."
Christmas fairy lights. "We've got lots of different colours, which start selling well from the start of December. We've also got festive neon signs this year."
© New Covent Garden Market
Glitter leaf spray. "Florists love these, and we'll sell thousands as they're so versatile. You can use them as part of a tree display or in a flower bouquet to create a little sparkle."
Giant mirrored bauble glitter balls. "Think of a 1970s disco and you've got a good idea of what these will add to a display. This trend started last year and looks set to continue, with lots of sizes and colours available."
