Irish department store among the top in the world

From fine foods to even finer clothes and jewelry, a shopping trip to one of these high-end stores is the ultimate luxury treat.

Little wonder then that destination shopping trips have become a thing with visitors from all around the world charting a course to these noted establishments.

That said, out of all the luxury department stores across the world you have to wonder which comes out on top. Well, now we know.

If your thoughts immediately spring to Bloomingdales in New York or Harrods in London then you're wrong - but in the right vicinity with the latter.

It's actually London's Fortnum and Mason that has claimed the top spot in a new survey conducted by CouponPi.

The brand analyzed the data of over 46,000 Google reviews for each store, subsequently awarding it a mark out of five, as well as the number of times words indicating a positive experience were used.

Fortnum and Mason received a rating score of 4.5 and a 10 out of 10 mark for positive words associated with it.

 The store dates to 1707 and has over the centuries become known for its food offering but also stocks homeware items. It has an annual turnover in excess of £208 million.

Following Fortnum and Mason is El Palacio in Mexico City and another London stalwart, Liberty in third which brings us to the Irish contender on the list.

Arnotts [in Dublin] which celebrated its 175th anniversary in 2018 has out-performed some of the best-known stores in the world to claim the fourth spot on the list.

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Arnott's department store on Henry Street, Dublin, photographed with Pitch 21 competition winners.

The store which occupies a prime location on Dublin's Henry Street was founded in 1845 by George Cannock and Andrew White. Three years later, Scottish entrepreneur John Arnott bought shares in the company and in 1865 it was rebranded as Arnotts.

It scored a 60.9 percent positive sentiment score with shoppers particularly taken with the friendliness of staff. Some positive reviews include praising "the really nice, charming and helpful staff' who go 'above and beyond' and 'truly made my day."

Arnotts beat out stiff competition to make it into the top five, including Selfridges which came in fifth place.

This was followed by Printemps in Paris, Takashimaya Shopping Centre in Ngee Ann City, Singapore, Bloomingdales on 59th Street in New York, followed by Saks Fifth Avenue and Le Bon Marché.

The report found that all stores received a minimum of 4.5 out of 5 in ratings and ranged between 44.9 percent and 62.1 percent for positive experience words.

* This article was originally published on Evoke.ie.