Mary Portas - I Shop, Therefore I Am - Queen Street Methodist Church

In Conversation with Helen Boaden

MARY PORTAS, is a businesswoman, broadcaster, author and activist. At age 32 she became a board member at Harvey Nichols before founding her own retail consultancy. Mary has since worked with some of the biggest names in global retail. Her BBC series _Mary Queen of Shops _premiered in 2007 and she’s presented on television and radio ever since. In 2009, she partnered with Save the Children to reinvent charity shops. Mary conducted a review of the future of high streets for the British government in 2011. In 2024, she was awarded an OBE for her services to business, broadcasting and charity.

This evening Mary will be sharing her new memoir _I Shop, Therefore I Am.__ _The setting is the 1990s and British fashion is ripe for reinvention. Leading the charge is a twenty-something Mary who has been brought in to revitalise the fusty department store Harvey Nichols into Harvey Nicks! Mary takes us behind her headline-grabbing window displays to show how she created an era-defining global brand destination. In her inimitable way she shares how her life altered alongside her career. An entertaining evening of wit, humour and frank conversation. The perfect Saturday night out!

PHOTO CREDIT LINDA NYLIND