Yep, it’s only July but already the big retailers are showcasing their festive wares. Jaine Blackman heads to London and gets into the Christmas spirit

I love Christmas in July – the time when companies showcase what’s coming up for the festive season.

While the first instinct might be along the “Bah, humbug, are they bonkers?!” there’s method in the madness.

Magazine issues are planned months in advance and no one wants to miss out on the chance of getting their goodies on those glossy pages for the lucrative Christmas market.

And with the amount of time it takes for a product to go from the idea stage to completion, many of the items on show will have been plannned since before last Christmas.

“It’s Christmas every day for me. It really is,” says seasonal and gifts buyer at Lakeland Lyndsey Brooks. Although it also might also be Valentine’s or Mother’s Day as she is always on the hunt for items to delight the company’s customers.

It’s great fun seeing the trends and products which will be packing stores’ shelves in the upcoming months, so with supermarkets, national chains and independent retailers setting up showcases in the capital, I took a trip to London to see what we could expect in Oxfordshire later this year.

After all, there are only 160 days days until Christmas.

ALDI

“All I want for Christmas is you!” I told French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli who was at Aldi’s festive showcase.

Unfortunately he wasn’t on offer but he gamely posed for a picture while detailing the delights the cut-price supermarket (there’s a branch on Botley Road, Oxford) would have this Christmas. The festive offerings are certainly impressive and include whole cooked brown crab, a five-bird (goose, turkey, chicken, pheasant and duck) roast, no end of fancy canapes, award-winning puds, whole legs of serrano ham...

There’s a host of wines and spirits to choose from, many of which have beaten leading brands in blind taste tests.

The keen prices of Aldi have never been in question and judging from what was on show, neither are the quality and selection.

This year it will even stock caviar.

LAKELAND

Top of my Christmas list – yes, even beating Jean-Christophe – is Lakeland’s Racing Elf Crackers (£19.99).

Inside each cracker is a wind-up elf and there’s a race track included. Oh, my family are in for such a treat! As well as Christmas products, gifts and hampers (“we pack our own so everything in there is something people really want” says buyer Lyndsey Brooks) the company was showcasing innovative kitchen gadgets and products, along with the latest cookery aids.

My favourites were 3D dinosaur cookie cutters (£3.99); pinata cake pan (£14.99), cookie cutter (£4.99) and cookie cup (£19.99); an easy layer cake pan set (£14.99); and the “safest ever” mandoline (£39.99) which promises to slice your veg without... argh, no, I can’t even bear to think about it!

Lakeland has stores in Bicester and Witney and products are available online at lakeland.co.uk

Oxford Mail:
Jaine with Christmas decorations at Poundland

POUNDLAND

Don’t be a snob and write Poundland off without taking a look at what’s on offer.

If I didn’t know where the items – all at £1 – on its Christmas displays came from I wouldn’t have been surprised if I’d been told they were from a swanky department store.

Yes, there’s tat and some of the items don’t stand up to close scrutiny but there are some gems too. I loved the orchid tree clips (pack of three); the sturdy stag tree decorations (pack of two); the ornate jewel-coloured photo frames and a Christmas countdown blackboard.

There’s a pug money box one of my pals is going to find in her stocking and won’t be at all disappointed if I find a Make Your Own Sock Monkey in mine. In fact, I’ll be disappointed if I don’t.

The Poundland event also boasted some great interior design ideas – wreaths on backs of chairs and decorations on the table for festive dining, wrapping paper displayed in photo frames and beautifully decked trees – which just goes to show, it isn’t cash that gives you taste.