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  UK’s Top Window Dressers Revealed In Retail ‘Skills Olympics’ 2009 FinalThe UK’s best window dressers were revealed at the live finale of UK-wide window dressing competition, skillVM on Wednesday. Rachel Love Cameron and Sara Walsh of the stylish Belfast store Avoca wowed judges with their fantasy ‘teatime’ display, beating the two other finalists in the retail category from Marmalade in Axminster, Devon and Swarovski in Dundee. In the student category, Carolyn Green and Nicola Birchall from the University of Lancashire, Hughbaird College Liverpool Campus, took the top spot ahead of teams from North West Kent College and Elmwood College in Cupar, Fife. The skillVM final, organised and run by Skillsmart Retail, the Sector Skills Council for Retail, was held at the prestigious In Store Show at London’s Olympia on Tuesday, 30th June and Wednesday, 1st July and is designed to highlight the variety of skills required to work in the retail sector. All three teams in each category had come through tough heats held at shopping centres in Dundee, Belfast, Manchester, Cardiff and Kent earlier this year. For the final, each team had to build their perfect window display in just three hours at the show, under the full gaze of thousands of retail industry professionals and camera crews from the BBC and other media at the exhibition. Reflecting on their success, Rachel Love Cameron from Avoca, said: “We are so pleased and so excited. We knew the standard of the competition was going to be high and we have been thinking about it for so long we just can’t believe it has actually happened. I have to admit we both had a bit of a Hollywood tear when they said that we had won. It’s a really good thing for us and for our store as we got across that Avoca is different from other shops with our lovely lux bohemian feel and for me I think it’s going to be a fast track for my career.” Carolyn Green from Hughbaid College, was equally as delighted. She said: “I’m really happy and excited. I couldn’t believe we’d won but it was fantastic to hear that we had. I think that the judges liked the fact that the display was eye-catching and grabbed people passing by. I am really glad that we won as I really think it’s going to help me in my career. It’s something that really stands out from other people who are applying for jobs.” skillVM was launched at the end of 2008 by the UK’s most famous visual merchandiser Mary ‘Queen of Shops’ Portas, to showcase talent within the retail sector. Dozens of entries were received, 20 teams made it to the heats before the top three teams in both student and retailer categories battled for top honours at the final. The success of the event means it is now likely that visual merchandising will be accepted as a competition at WorldSkills, which comes to London in 2011 and which could see the UK’s best visual merchandisers go head-to-head with the best global talent. Skillsmart Retail’s Chief Executive Anne Seaman, added: “I had the privilege to help judge the student category of this year’s skillVM and I was taken aback by just how professional all three teams were. They really combined artistic flair with knowledge of the product and a good commercial sense – everything which is needed in a good visual merchandiser. Carolyn and Nicola were very worthy winners. “The retailer category proved a very close-run affair but Rachel and Sara from Avoca created a stunning display that brilliantly showed their product knowledge and creativity. “We wish all our finalists as well as those who didn’t make it to the final all the best for their future careers in visual merchandising.” skillVM head judge Alan Westcott, who has more than 30 years’ experience in visual merchandising said: “Visual merchandisers are rarely given their moment in the spotlight but skillVM has really given all our competitors the chance to shine in front of top executives from some of the biggest retail firms. “Visual merchandising includes everything from window displays to store design and it is a vital part of retail business – the look of a store can make the difference between it being successful or not. This really is an essential skill in retailing.”
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