Mona Lisa edit

We had an idea the other day. Well I had seen it in a high street retailer in York where they used an old painting in an easel and in bright pink paint painted over it with “spring stock NEW ARRIVALS” I thought it was brilliant. It was an old landscape scene with trees and sheep you know the normal.

Can I just add I in no way endorse graffiti but once on a trip to Rome whilst taking an evening stroll with a guide one of the other visitors pointed out the graffiti on the city walls and asked why they didn’t remove it, the guide simply replied in a swish Italian accent “We look at it as art”. Enough said.

But I wonder if Leonardo would object to someone sprawling “Free buns with every cuppa” across the Mona Lisa leant against a makeshift cafe outside the Louvre. Then again she has survived being shot at.

We had an old print in the shop in a tatty frame. We checked it for value etc plus it was damaged so we used some orange paint and painted in bright colours VINTAGE.

We have placed it on a shelf above our vintage clothes section - it does look very effective but has been met with mixed response and an occasional gasp but overall it’s positive.  I look at it as creativity and modern thinking and actually this sort of thing has been done for years I remember seeing an artist painting a scene in a very large flagship Topman store.

Vintage clothing as I have said before do generate a lot of interest and if you create a section dedicated to it you attract a whole new shopper without compromising the integrity of the rest of the shop.

I have been to vintage fares in the past and let me tell you there is a lot of money spent! The last time I went to one they had two 1950s pin up girls with a basket of candy floss and a DJ spinning vintage war time tracks mixed with contemporary dub step. Great atmosphere – not saying I am going to start blasting out dirty bass beats featuring the velvet tones of Vera Lynn belting “We’ll meet again” ....

I don’t think so Autism Plus shoppers you have been saved!