It's Christmas!

England are out of the World Cup and Glasto is over so what's to look forward to now? Christmas! July marks the start of Xmas press show mania at ZPR starting next week with kitchenware supremos Lakeland - what will be this year's banana guard or strawberry huller? Well all will be revealed on Thursday as we celebrate Lakeland's passion for product at a stunning venue called the Violin Factory near Waterloo.

Elsewhere on the high street girls are getting giddy for Cheryl Cole's limited edition pink Elnett hairspray can at a Superdrug near you and in the back gardens of Britain families are making the most of the heatwave with paddling pools and trampolines jumping out of B&Q's doors.

At the World's best department store lego jewellery is the latest craze and what else will we be playing with this Autumn Winter? Well you'll just have to wait until all is revealed at the Selfridges PLAY themed press show on 22 July.

And talking of play - will we be celebrating Murray Mania today?

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COME ON ENGLAND!

In between securing world class coverage, ZPR girls are slapping on fake tan and clipping on hair extensions (well Lucy is anyway), ahead of the ZPR world cup party tomorrow at St Barnabas House. With any luck/miracle, we'll be toasting England's (albeit first) victory over cocktails and scrumptious canapés.

Top of tomorrow's world cup party guest list will be B&Q's famous £12 England gnome, adored by celebrities including Elton John and Jonathan Ross and currently challenging media space with Becks and Rooney.

Forget traditional orange segments, half time fodder for Londoners watching tomorrow's match has to be Waitrose's world cup England sandwich. Blighty's most patriotic sarnie costs £3.95, is hand made in Waitrose's Clerkenwell store, and boasts eleven English delicacies including beef, ham, chicken, chutney, rocket and spinach.

Outside of the world of football, Superdrug is ensuring it's a safe summer for Brits, launching the UK's first flat pricing policy on all sun care. This massive new investment is across all factors, formulations and all brands and will cut prices on some products by up to almost £6. Customers can finally reap the benefits of not being penalised for choosing higher, safer, skin protection. Here's to a sun smart summer!

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The Great Escape...

Last week ZPR girls escaped the big smoke to the stunning Limewood Hotel (where Sophie Dahl and Jamie Cullum tied the knot) in the fabulous English countryside. Why? To celebrate the launch of Pearl Lowe for Peacocks Spring 2010. Fashion folk and celebrities donned their Hunter wellies for a pony trek in the New Forest and banished city stress in the Limewood’s spa, before donning their glad rags for a sumptuous dinner attended by Pearl, Daisy and Jamie Winstone to name drop a few. There was no official entertainment (outside of the lovely Lisa Moorish spinning her favourite tracks), although Lucy’s inadvertent ‘setting herself alight’ with a tea light did turn a few heads and we’re thinking of entering her for Britain’s Got Talent as our in-house flambé fashionista.

Staying with the world of celebrity, Lizzie Jagger sported her sarong and sun visa in support of Superdrug’s sun care campaign, raising awareness for skin safety in the sun. Whilst being interviewed for The Times, we discovered Lizzie suffered severe sun burn on a family holiday as a child so is passionate about spreading the importance of sun safety. Lizzie looked sensational, and if I look half as fabulous as her mother Jerry at (almost) half her age I’ll be thrilled.

B&Q’s celebrity supporter arrived in the form of Paul McCartney who declared he loves shopping in his local B&Q store for nails (as in the type you drill into a wall, as apposed those of the manicured variety). Perhaps he’s finally got round to putting up his seeming billions of platinum albums my mother’s spent most of her life humming. Jackie sent him his own orange apron to ensure he was correctly kitted out whilst DIY-ing, which he’s since said he likes to relax at home in. Lounge furniture yes, but who’d have thought B&Q would inadvertently go into lounge attire?

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Sizzling into May

First week of May and ZPR is sizzling. Solait’s Factor 50 was in full flow as Sophy paraded a host of scantily clad models onto Millennium Bridge to celebrate the launch of Superdrug’s sun awareness campaign.


For those who would prefer to hide from the sun altogether, yet still sport a sun kissed glow, Flawless Tan is just what the style doctor ordered. We put Rhianne to the test. Departing the office Tuesday night armed with FT’s four easy steps and returning Wednesday morning looking like she’d returned from a weekend in Dubai with not a streak mark in sight – I kid you not.


To the inherent annoyance to the rest of the team, it’s usually only Lucy who whistles whilst she works. This week however we’ve had the pleasure of listening to world champion whistler, David Morris putting us (or at least Lucy) to shame as he joins forces with B&Q’s Trade Point to find the best builder’s whistle (wolf whistles not accepted). Auditions carry on this week, but entries so far are definitely shaping up to show Britain’s definitely got Builders Talent in all areas.


Waitrose, the big cheese in the world of supermarkets got Jacobs crackers at the ready to celebrate coming top in Which Best British Cheese survey. Despite our cheese counters being armed with hoards of cheese from all corners of the globe, it’s our old favourites cheddar and stilton that still come out top.


This week Zaria, Lucy and Sophy will be galloping off to the New Forest with Pearl, Daisy and friends to launch Pearl Lowe for Peacocks’ spring collection at The Limewood Hotel. Until then, tally ho…

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The Sun is Shining

The Sun is shining and so is our coverage! The Front cover of YOU Magazine this weekend with our exclusive shots of Daisy Lowe and Pearl Lowe launching Pearl's latest range for Peacocks - watch out for this fab new range of dresses hitting a Peacocks store near you next month.

And whilst the sun is shining we're all spending time outside and in the garden but did you know that home-owners aged 25 to 34 are unable to name even the most basic plants such as geraniums, lavender or poppies.

But older age groups faired better in the poll – with more people aged 55 to 64 able to identify unusual flowers like lupins, fuchsias and ceanothus (Californian lilac).

The B&Q poll of 2,000 people shows only 29 per cent of younger people know what a lupin looks like, compared to 69 per cent of those over 55. So do you know your geraniums from your onions?

Next update we'll be sharing how you can make the quickest ice lollies ever, what day is safe for you to reveal all and get your legs out of those opaques plus how you can capture all that sun and save money by installing solar panels!

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We've got a Spring in our Step

With the sun finally making an appearance this weekend - the first BBQ's were fired up and bedding plants planted - all made easier by amazing discounts on BBQ's and bedding plants at B&Q.

And if you were getting your legs out for the first time this year - you weren't the only ones as sales of fake tan are on the rise at Selfridges - up 80% YOY.

Meanwhile we unzipped the secrets of the manity case with the news from Superdrug that top ten grooming items for men include an eye roll on and hair dye - how it's moved on from the traditional lynx effect!?

The last couple of weeks has been a tough call between the amount of chocolate arriving at our office and the tasty new pineberry on sale at Waitrose. Perhpas next year as well as chocolate hot cross buns we'll have chocolate coated pineberries.

The WAGs were out in force this weekend at Aintree and a few of us scored a succesful bet or two in the Grand National. Maxi dresses a plenty at Aintree this weekend and if you want to get the perfect WAG look just check out Peacocks new website which launches this week.

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Us ZPR girls love a bargain and top of the fashion hot list this week is the Peacocks £10 designer inspired satchel.

Selling out in the first week it is hot stuff and an absolute bargain compared to the Chloe version which retails for £9,000. The satchel hit headlines all across the country in nationals such as Daily Mail – twice, The Sun – twice, The Mirror, The Guardian, Fabulous magazine many weekly magazines and in online fashion blogs…phew - a real must have this spring. More stock has now arrived so get yourself to Peacocks now before they disappear again…

In the office we would prefer chocolate over veg any day but it would appear the rest of the country are embracing the vegetable and growing their essential 5 a day. The recent sunshine coupled with the continuing march of the Grow Your Own revolution has seen sales of vegetable seeds rise so far this year at B&Q. Last year sales of vegetable seeds rose 30 per cent – and sales so far this spring show this trend is set to continue! The bestselling seeds are the more traditional British vegetables, onion, carrot, peas, beans, tomatoes and lettuce. So follow the trend and lets get gardening…

We all hate bad breath and a survey by Superdrug confirms by how much. It was rated the worst smell coming above smoke breath. Invest in Superdrug toothpaste and mouthwash to combat the problem. Tic tacs at the ready everyone.

The Waitrose team went gaga for Ostrich eggs this week! Apparently, the eggs, which are only available at Waitrose can feed a whole rugby team. We didn’t try one in the office—you need a whole toolbox to crack it open—but we’re sure if we tried to make an omelette out of it we wouldn’t go hungry for days!

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Whilst many would believe that barns and instant tattoos would not sound like the classiest of luxuries, Chanel has proven them wrong. As models elegantly sauntered their way down the hay-laiden catwalk of Chanel’s spring/summer 2010 show, they sported what has become one of the most-sought after beauty trends of the season, the transfer tattoo. We at ZPR have been chomping at the bit to get our hands on these covetable artworks, as Selfridges exclusively launched the tattoos in its own barn setting on Oxford Street. With experts on-hand to apply the tattoos to the eagerly awaiting customers, we dare you to show your allegiance to Chanel with some decorative body bling!

Meanwhile in a little town further south, Katie and the newest members of Superdrug’s St Austell team welcomed hoards of customers through its doors for the first time. Visitors to the White River Place shopping centre were in for a treat, as Superdrug celebrated its opening with fun-filled activities for the whole family. No doubt the men of St Austell will have been flocking to see the cutting of the ribbon…maybe not for the Mayor himself who was on hand alongside Alan Johnson, the Retail Director of Superdrug, but more likely to catch a glimpse of local beauty queen Miss Cornwall who assisted with those giant scissors. The day was a success all round, leaving a very tired Katie to a long train journey back to the big smoke!

Jackie was also out and about last week in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. Wondering if she should have sported her twin set and pearls, she visited the education centre of the Women’s Institute to help its members prove that with the guiding hands of B&Q, they need not fear the power tool! This was the first of B&Q’s DIY classes for the WI to encourage women to get out of the kitchen, and tackle the rest of the home. Teaching skills such as mending a leaking tap, applying wallpaper and putting up your curtain rail, the ladies who attended the workshop enjoyed ‘’a fantastic day’’, eager to continue their education. This may leave the men of Abbingdon at a loss…

The Waitrose team announced to top foodie journalists its collaboration with two of Britain’s best-loved chefs, Delia Smith, and Heston Blumenthal. With Delia’s traditional values and Heston’s outstanding creations, this partnership is predicted to set the food world alight. As the pair are set to share their knowledge with budding chefs in advertising campaigns, Waitrose fans should prepare their taste buds now!

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