We were delighted to once again attend the prestigious Walpole Awards for Excellence on Monday evening. Dubbed the ‘Oscars of luxury’ by The Walpole’s Chief Executive, Julia Carrick, the event brings together some of the biggest (and most luxurious!) names in the industry.

Gathered in Banqueting House in Whitehall, it was a perfect setting to meet faces old and new.

The evening was sponsored by Coutts & Co. and was kicked off by individual welcome speeches from Julia Carrick and Coutts Chief Executive, Michael Morley. Then came what everyone was excited for – the awards.

Big winners of the night included Victoria Beckham for ‘Emerging British Luxury Brand’ and Mr Porter for ‘Luxury Brand Online’. Sarah Burton unsurprisingly picked up the ‘British Luxury Design Talent’ award, topping off a year that has sky-rocketed her in the fashion industry.

Fans of Dowton Abbey were thrilled to see actor Hugh Bonneville at the event, who actually scooped a surprise award himself!

Take a look at all the winners and nominees from the night here.

We thoroughly enjoyed insights from David Duplantis, EVP of Global Web and Digital Media for Coach. Within his talk he revealed that Coach’s e-commerce doubled last year and will double again next year – a feat that he in part puts down to the brand’s strong social media activity. Having taken over an unofficial Coach Facebook page and relaunched it with an in-store gift with purchase. Coach also invests heavily in its blogger outreach – a range of influencers that David said “makes a brand more believable”. Later in a panel discussing mobile commerce, David added: “Optimising your web store for mobile might not be the right thing if your customers only search for store location details on their mobile device”.

Imran Ahmed, Founder and editor of the Business of Fashion, began the seminar’s talks by discussing everything from digital marketing to mobile commerce. On the subject of social media he said: “Advertising interrupts, whilst social sharing is an earned media”.

The afternoon session held more enlightening discussions with panels including Jorg Henson of Ventee-Privee, Caroline Rolfe of Links of London, James Quarles of Facebook and Michael Ward of Harrods.

Here are some more quotes from the day’s speakers – including Imran Amed, the founder and editor of the Business of Fashion, and Martin Gill, Principal Analyst for Forrester Research – that we found encouraging…

• By 2020, there will be 10 billion mobile-connected devices in the world
• Mobile video makes up 47% of peak hour traffic
• By 2014-15, mobile internet will be the mainstream technology
• 39% of people who research a product on the internet will end up purchasing it

Is it raining where you are? Well, it isn’t here. And thank goodness for that – as we are but hours away from the start of our sixth annual summer party. More colloquially known as GASP.

The marquees are erected, the Pimms is on ice and the sun is shining (at least for now). Unfortunately for us however, GASP is usually the cue for the heavens to open. So if you did have a rain dance planned for today, we ask that you kindly steer clear of Covent Garden and head to somewhere slightly more prepared for such a downpour – Glastonbury, perhaps?

It seems the party atmosphere is infectious as just we are putting the final preparations on our own celebrations, this musical parade came strolling past our office windows headed up by the town-crier in full regalia …

Look forward to seeing you all at Pimms o’clock!

The campaign is aimed at encouraging the estimated 9.2m people in the UK who have never used the internet to get online, with each promotional trail directing people to a dedicated BBC First Click Advice free helpline where they can find out about beginner computer courses in their local area.

Prior to the campaign the BBC launched a a major research survey into what barriers have so far prevented people from using the internet.

Catriona McGrath, BBC head of marketing for Future Media & Technology, said, “Our single biggest insight was that a claimed lack of interest in the internet frequently masked other barriers, such as lack of confidence in using it or even a dislike of formal learning… The campaign is all about reassuring people that they’re not alone in thinking they might be too old or unskilled to learn how to use the internet.”

Launching today in Covent Garden as part of The London Restaurant Festival (4-18 October 2010), Street Kitchen will go on to visit two other landmark London locations finishing at the closing ceremony of the festival in Old Spitalfields Market on 18 October.

The New York-style street van will be selling a seasonal British menu, serving dishes such as Home Smoked Salmon and Braised Featherblade of Beef. All dishes will cost between £4.50 – £6.50 and food lovers can follow daily updates @foodinitiative, @chefjun and @streetkitchen.

All the produce and beverages are sourced directly from sustainable and organic UK farms and producers in a celebration of what the UK has to offer. Mark and Jun have also enlisted the help of the Ecological Economist, Dr Daniel Lopez Dias, who will help them consider the impact of all their consumptive choices to minimise the environmental impact of the project. Even more impressive is that Jun and Mark have put their own personal money into this project and that proceeds from the sales will go to charity group, Action Against Hunger.

So… what are you waiting for? Great British food to celebrate Great British produce and all for a good cause! Yummy!

It’s Google’s 12th birthday today, and Google’s regular logo has been replaced by an image of a cake, created by the American painter Wayne Thiebaud.

As far as Google’s birthday is concerned, today’s logo change solidifies the notion that Google’s birthday is, indeed, September 27th. Google had previously been unclear about the exact date, sometimes celebrating on September 7th  (although the Google.com domain was registered on September 15th, 1997).

Although 12 years is a lot in the world of IT, the fact that a company has grown so huge in this time frame never fails to astound us. Happy birthday, Google!

Finally, after months of office whispers, rumors and speculation, the world’s largest apple store opened last Saturday – practically opposite GA HQ.

Legions of apple fans queued overnight to be the first to enter and experience the Covent Garden homage to all things ‘Apple’, housed in a fabulously refurbished Grade II listed building.

The retail space is spread over three floors, with larger devices and accessories displayed on wall-mounted displays and smaller gadgets on wooden tables. It also features a set-up room where customers can ask for help to get started with their new devices.

The new store is Apple’s 28th in the UK and will employ 300 staff. As well as housing just about every Apple product under the sun the store will also host regular events, workshops and presentations.

Click here for more information and a schedule of workshops and events.

Take a look at our pics…

To celebrate the 180th anniversary of its famous Market Building, Covent Garden is marking the milestone with a diverse programme of free events that combine culture, art, history, fine food and good old-fashioned entertainment.

The festivities kick off this Friday with the unveiling of a massive birthday card and cake that will feed 2,000 people (no guessing where the GA staff will be at 12.30pm!)

Alongside foodie treats, there’ll be goodies for grown ups, art installations, ice sculptures, party games, workshops, entertainment and live music for all. For a full schedule of this weekend’s line up visit: www.coventgardenlondonuk.com

This year they will re-run their production of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ which is back following rave reviews last year. (GA cameos with Juliet longingly enquiring ‘O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?’ from our window!)

The company will also be performing ‘Wind in the Willows’, which débuts this year. We have spied on a few of the rehearsals and it looks like a great production with a set that Ratty and Mole would be proud of.

This is one of London’s ‘hidden’ gems, and the perfect way to spend an afternoon or evening soaking up some culture and reminding yourself why our city is so fantastic!

Take a look at the Iris Theatre site if you fancy finding out more about the productions or want to book some tickets, we’ll see you there!