Elton John pop-up to open at Bicester Village as he unveils eyewear

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Apr 3, 2023

The marketing support at retail for Elton John’s UK tour is continuing and fresh from news of the opening of the Elton John takeover at Selfridges Corner Shop, comes the announcement of a Bicester Village pop-up linked to the launch of the star’s eyewear offer.

Opening on Tuesday (4 April), it hosts a wide variety of products, including the Elton John Eyewear line as an exclusive for The Bicester Collection.

On sale at the store will be both opticals and sunglasses at a time when the UK eyewear market is very buoyant and is seeing a large number of store openings. The eyewear will also be available at the newly-launch eltonjohneyewear.com.

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Elton John said: “Self-expression is at the core of everything I do. I learned long ago that my style is what gives me confidence, and I just don’t feel myself without my glasses. Creating a stylish eyewear collection has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. 

“I’ve distilled defining moments of my rock ‘n’ roll career into designs that bring joy and allow you to make a statement without saying a word. This collection is for every single person staying authentic to themselves in a world that is constantly pushing you to be someone else. I designed this line to have something for everyone: no matter who you are, you can always look yourself.” 

Some 10% of proceeds from sales at The Bicester Collection will go to the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The Elton John AIDS Foundation was established in 1992 with the mission of ending the AIDS epidemic. 

Also in the Bicester store, there will be “museum-worthy memorabilia, highly-collectible signed merchandise, unique artworks, rare photography and one-off, limited-edition pieces”.
 
The pop-up coincides with the London dates of the tour and with Bicester Village just 45 minutes from London via train, it’s a key part of the London catchment area.

And of course, Bicester is a tourist magnet. While tourist arrivals haven’t yet recovered from the pandemic and the ending of the VAT-free shopping perk in Britain, Bicester’s core money-off proposition continues to drive footfall from international visitors.

Meanwhile, other pop-ups to support the eyewear launch running up to the summer will be at Kildare Village, Dublin; Bicester Village again (in June and July); Ingolstadt Village, Munich; Wertheim Village, Frankfurt; La Roca Village, Barcelona; Maasmechelen Village, Brussels-Antwerp-Cologne; and La Vallée Village, Paris.