It was one of those wet and miserable Monday mornings in London, when all you want to do is curl up and go back to bed; but luckily things soon changed for the better!

One of our #TeamCoco writers, Rachel McAlley was invited to spend the morning at ICON Outlet at The O2, and she was blown away by every element of the visit especially the fact that ICON Outlet at The O2 is an indoor shopping centre.

I arrived at ICON Outlet at The O2 and stood below the sweeping floral staircase that leads from the ground floor O2 Arena and foyer to the warm and welcoming mezzanine floor of ICON itself. The staircase glowed with glistening sparkles, and the main entrance was Instagram-worthy as it was decadently adorned with beautiful fresh flowers and greenery, looking resplendent for a Monday morning. I had forgotten the rain already.

I walked up the staircase, and took in the majestic surroundings of both the venue itself and the glitter balls at the top of the staircase. It was simply a wonderment for the eyes.

But, I wasn’t there to admire the scenery I was there to shop, and shop I did. With over a staggering 50 iconic brands to choose from my plan of action was to visit as many stores as possible and check out their latest offers. Stores including Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Osprey, Moleskin, Karen Millen, Hotel Chocolat, Paperchase, and Cath Kidston were on my immediate hit list, closely followed by Hackett London, Fat Face, Levi’s, and Radley. But little did I know that I’d also end up spending time in a number of other retailers like Gap Outlet, Whittard, The Body Shop, and Ted Baker – there simply wasn’t enough time in the morning, so I stayed until mid-afternoon to fulfill my shopping dreams.

Shopping is thirsty work, so I took a little break and rested my feet at The Gentlemen Baristas, a fabulous coffee shop with a cracking range of coffees, teas and beers too, plus plenty of bakes to enjoy and snacks to refuel before heading back onto the concourse for some more afternoon retail therapy.

It was good to meet some of the store managers and ask about this new outlet and what they all thought of it, and I have to say every comment was positive, which I conquered with. It’s a fantastic outlet, the stores are high end and high street, they cater for all demographics, and best of all it’s indoor; because as you know, the weather in the UK isn’t always sunshine and roses!

The open spaced layout of ICON Outlet at The O2 is ideal for everyone, whether walking, with a pushchair, in a wheelchair, or even sit-on scooters would be accessible. The facilities are second to none, with the latest technologies in place, large spacious bathrooms, excellent baby changing, and the chance to leave luggage and be hands free throughout your time at the outlet, make this an ideal shopping location when visiting London.

We have also been informed that there will be a fabulous new restaurant opening this summer within ICON Outlet at The O2, by CHLOE. by CHLOE aims to share delicious, wholesome, plant-based food that fuels and energises without compromising flavour, taste or satisfaction. They promise a chef-drive vegan menu of locally sourced ingredients and are mindful of eco-friendly packaging too.

And, for those of us with the intention of being mindful of ourselves, there’s the unique wellbeing hub ‘The Hour’ within ICON Outlet at The O2, a pop-up focused solely on wellness and with wellbeing in mind. ‘The Hour’ offers a range of classes from yoga and mindfulness, to more intensive HIIT classes. The major plus is that you can book in for just a 15-minute session in a lunch break; it’s entirely up to you.

So, our visit to ICON Outlet at The O2 was much more than we expected, from the excellent retail offering to the added extras of ‘The Hour’, the Insta-worthy hangout, and the luggage and shopping hands free, this shopping centre is an absolute asset to this part of London. We instantly fell in love.

For more info visit https://iconattheo2.co.uk

Author

A veteran in global travel, Rachel also loves to explore hidden gems on home turf. She’s a writing connoisseur of Britain’s best hotels, luxury beauty products, and UK food and drink launches.

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