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A First In Asia For Royally-Endorsed Fortnum & Mason, One Of Britain’s Finest Food Emporiums
Fortnum & Mason: by royal appointment.
Britain’s Fortnum & Mason, the go-to choice for hampers, tea, and high-quality gourmet food, has debuted its first store in the Asia travel retail channel at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) through a deal with Lagardère Travel Retail.
The purveyor of top-notch food and drink for over 300 years, has opened in the East Hall luxury zone of the air hub just as it is coming out of an extended Covid hangover thanks to strict testing and quarantine rules that were in place for longer than most other airports in Asia, apart from China.
The 500-square-foot store is throwing its doors open at the right time to cater to outbound Hong Kongers and transiting passengers looking for gifts this holiday season. The space offers a wide assortment of Fortnum & Mason’s most in-demand teas, biscuits, chocolates, tea accessories, and gift boxes along with the brand’s highly sought-after seasonal Christmas collections that are also now in-store.
Tea is a big focus of the shop with part of the space dedicated to a bespoke fixture inspired by the ‘Royal Blend Teacup’. Tea is pivotal to Fortnum & Mason’s stored past; from 1902, its brews came to boast a royal pedigree thanks to a bespoke blend specially created for King Edward VII.
Eudes Fabre, CEO—North Asia at Lagardère Travel Retail, said: “The product offer and eye-catching design are a complement to the exceptional luxury line-up in HKIA’s East Hall.” The hall is home to a slew of luxury brands including Breitling, Burberry, Cartier, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, and Saint Laurent, though some boutiques remain closed due to the low traffic levels.
Fortnum & Mason’s most in-demand teas, biscuits, chocolates, tea accessories, and gift boxes are … [+]
Lagardère Travel Retail has ensured the store design highlights the Royal Warrants which represent Fortnum & Mason’s long and close relationship with the British royal family, which is expected to help drum up sales. The profile of the British royals is currently riding high thanks to the presence of Prince William and the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, at the star-studded 2022 Earthshot Prize Awards on Friday while there is endless media discussion about the Netflix mini-series about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle which is set to air on Thursday.
Still some way to go on footfall
The main driver of sales at the new store will, however, be passenger traffic. While it is picking up, numbers have yet to reach one million a month and remain well below pre-pandemic levels. In October, traffic at HKIA hit 755,000, a surge of over 400% over the same period last year. It sounds a lot, but it is still only 13% of the level seen in the same month in 2019.
Commenting on the new airport store—there is one in downtown Hong Kong at the Victoria Harbor Waterfront— Fortnum & Mason’s CEO Tom Athron said: “The addition of our first travel retail boutique in Asia will be a wonderful addition to our flagship in the city . We already serve many sophisticated local consumers in Hong Kong and mainland China and our experience from operating and engaging our customers at our store in London Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 5 gives us great confidence in our first travel retail boutique outside the UK”
Fortnum & Mason is owned by Wittington Investments—led by Canada’s powerful Weston family—which also has a majority stake in Associated British Foods, the owner of value retailer Primark. The Westons sold department store Selfridges earlier this year.
For St. Pete man, perfect macarons are both fun and a side hustle
Joshua Pramis planned to celebrate his 40th birthday with his favorite indulgence — melt-in-your-mouth salted caramel cafe mocha macarons.
The chocolate shells are filled with mocha buttercream and salted caramel and drizzled with chocolate sauce and flakes of sea salt. They look like they came from the finest patisserie in Paris. But no, Pramis creates and cooks the French treats in his St. Petersburg kitchens.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/LG6EYPUZYZABXCPI3XI5Z2DOLY.jpeg "Joshua Pramis, a journalist with The Penny Hoarder personal finance website, started out by baking banana bread and gradually progressed to a dazzling variety of macarons.")
The origin of the macaron is a bit fuzzy, but legend has it that they were introduced to France by an Italian baker. It doesn’t matter the roots, it’s the results that matter to Pramis.
This month, he’s busy developing holiday-inspired versions of the meringue sandwich cookies with flavors of peppermint and gingerbread for his family, friends and co-workers at The Penny Hoarder, a personal finance website based in St. Petersburg. Last Christmas, his ornament-shaped macarons and red-and-white swirled peppermint confections were a hit.
But he didn’t stop there, making macarons shaped like Easter eggs and bunnies. He created architectural toppings with, of all things, popular cereals. He’s really just starting his creative journey.
Pramis writes The Penny Hoarder’s email newsletter by day. On weekends and evenings, he tests recipes and tempers chocolates and sugars. A fan of the “The Great British Baking Show,” he started baking on a whim about four years ago, starting with banana bread and progressing to cookies and cupcakes. Macarons — not to be confused with chewy coconut macaroons — are the next challenge.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/PVZ5V7YLVJADBG63J4Z76IS2SE.jpeg "A journalist by day, Joshua Pramis tests recipes for macarons at night. He baked his first batch two years ago and they have become increasingly elaborate.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/YKSE6UCAMVGHJDTJLP6M6QFAQ4.jpg "Some of Joshua Pramis' most popular macarons have toppings made with candied bits of cereal.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/GUBC6H4THVBAFFTTCKCXDCFAIE.jpg "Some of Joshua Pramis' macarons are flecked with sea salt and other toppings.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/EOEIE7XJPVEZZH4X5SGARCMWBI.jpg "Macron, shown here, is not to be confused with chewy coconut macaroons.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/67QG34JSMNC6FNCZXNWNBDJ7VM.png "Dig in to Tampa Bay's food and drink scenes")
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/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/KGT5MLHFI5DM5KHNLEBEVJT6WA.jpg "Joshuan Pramis says macarons are a dessert that \"requires a ton of patience.''")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/ZOC62EV2ZNAXNJOEZOAHCJPPBQ.jpg "Joshua Pramis' ornament-shaped macarons were a hit last Christmas.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/R5U5JGXZ5VHKNI6L4E5HF644GU.jpg "Joshua Pramis makes macarons with a variety of toppings and fillings.")
Two years ago, Pramis baked his first batch and they turned out perfectly. With great confidence, he offered to bring macarons to his family’s upcoming Thanksgiving gathering.
“I had a little bit of beginner’s luck,” he said. “The first batch wasn’t perfectly smooth but they actually looked decent and I was like, ‘What is everybody talking about, these aren’t that bad.’”
The day before Thanksgiving he started baking, only to toss out batch after batch of cracked or too-flat meringues, which made him reevaluate his baking prowess. “I almost called it quits — but that fourth, winning batch came out and I just had that feeling that I wanted to keep doing this,” he said.
He kept making macarons, whipping egg whites and slowly adding sugar and cream of tartar and tossing out as many duds as keepers. “It took a little while to get the hang of it and I was bouncing around between recipes,” he said.
Then a friend suggested he check out Brazilian blogger Camila Hurst’s website, Pies and Tacos, for baking tips. She uses the Swiss method of making macarons, mixing the sugar and egg whites together and heating the ingredients over a double boiler before adding a bit of syrup and whipping the mixture. success!
Patience is the key ingredient, Pramis said. You have to get the meringue right before sifting in confectioners’ sugar and almond flour.
“It’s weird because I’m not a very patient person in general and this is a dessert that requires tons of patience,” he said. “In a way it has helped to reel me in overall, in all aspects of my life. If you want to get the winning macaron, you have to keep going and going. And you don’t ever know until they come out of the oven.”
Pramis posted photos of his best batches on social media and started getting requests from friends. He has a dedicated following at @themaczaddy on Instagram and a side business that keeps elevating his creativity. He started with plain cookies filled with chocolate or
A Harvard nutritionist and brain expert says avoid these 5 foods to keep your ‘memory and focus sharp’
1. Foods made with industrial and processed seed oils
Highly processed oils are often extracted from soybeans, corn, rapeseed (the source of canola oil), cottonseed, sunflower and safflower seeds, and contain a lot of omega-6 fatty acids.
Excess consumption of Omega-6s can trigger the body to produce chemicals that can lead to inflammation in the brain.
If you’re sautéing vegetables or grilling fish or meat, I recommend using olive, coconut or avocado oil.
2. Foods with added and refined sugars
Our brain uses energy in the form of glucose, a type of sugar, to fuel cellular activities. But a high sugar diet can lead to excess glucose in the brain.
This can cause memory impairments and less plasticity of the hippocampus, the part of the brain that controls memory.
Don’t forget that many savory foods have hidden added sugars, too, like store-bought pasta sauces, ketchups, salad dressings and even canned soups. Swap these out for homemade items made with whole foods.
3. Processed foods
A 2022 study also found that participants who consumed high amounts of ultra-processed foods such as baked goods and sodas were more likely to experience mild depression compared to those who consumed the least.
Here’s a tip: If you can’t pronounce an ingredient, or have no idea what it is, it’s often best to avoid it.
4. Foods with artificial sweeteners
When you use artificial sweeteners that have no nutritional value, they can increase “bad” gut bacteria which can negatively affect you mood.
These sweeteners include saccharin, sucralose and stevia. Aspartame can be especially harmful, and has been directly linked to anxiety in research studies. It also causes oxidation, which increases harmful free radicals in the brain.
Some alternatives to consider: Honey, monk fruit extract or coconut sugar.
5. Fried foods
While items that are battered, crusted or deep-fried may be at the top of the comfort foods list, they can be damaging to the brain.
A study of over 18,000 people found that a diet high in fried foods was linked to lower scores of memory and cognition.
As an alternative, I suggest opting for baked, air-fried, or steamed versions of your favorite foods.
Dr. Uma Naidoo is a nutritional psychiatrist, brain expert, and faculty member at Harvard Medical School. She is also the Director of Nutritional & Lifestyle Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital and author of the best-selling book “This Is Your Brain on Food: An Indispensable Guide to the Surprising Foods that Fight Depression, Anxiety, PTSD, OCD, ADHD, and More.” Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
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