Thanks to a handful of absurdly memorable adverts in the 80s, in which a generation of pre-digital consumers looked up everything from new bikes to furniture restorers to old books about fly fishing, the Yellow Pages became a fixture sitting by the (landline) phone in almost every home in the UK.
Sadly, it would not be a permanent fixture. As with so much in the world of print, the phone number directory was edged out when the internet came along, becoming Yell.com
But now Selfridge’s – famous for its sunshine yellow branding – is bringing back the legendary tome, in the form of a fanzine, borrowing back the name Yellow Pages.
The 72-page zine will show off the store’s latest collections for Autumn and Winter, and will feature content from the likes of Versace, NEWGEN, Jil Sander, Nina Ricci by Harris Reed and Martine Rose.
Designed by Richard Turley, the founder of Civilisation magazine and editorial director of Interview Magazine, it features contributions from the likes of Paul Flynn, Sherbert Biz, Ed Cumming and Ayo Ojo.
The zine will be will be available at Selfridges stores in London, Manchester and Birmingham, Unitom in Manchester, The NEWGEN show space at the Old Selfridges Hotel and Factory International in Manchester.
Selfridges executive creative director, Laura Weir, said: “This September, through Yellow Pages, Selfridges becomes a directory of fashion and culture with a kaleidoscopic curation of experiences and cultural collaborations, coming to life in our stores, digitally, across our windows and in a new print publication.
“We’re positioning ourselves at the epicentre of new season and cultural conversation, helping customers to navigate straight to the ‘good stuff’.”
Luke Taylor, Co-CEO of Yell Ltd, added: “Yell has evolved a lot since we delivered the final copies of the Yellow Pages in 2019, but we’ll never forget how the business started, and we can’t think of a better brand to bring back those origins with, than Selfridges.
“The parallels between both businesses go deeper than just the yellow and black branding, as both of us have been a constant in British life for decades now and have always been focused on offering the very best to our customers – be it helping someone to find the perfect outfit, or the ideal business for a variety of needs.”
