Customer Reviews

Welcome to Big Biba: Inside the Most Beautiful Store in the World

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

For those who were there, it brings back memories. For those who were not, "Big Biba" shows what you missed. For everyone, a look through this over-sized picture book will fill you with awe-- how could this have been???? But it was... Although, as a transatlantic visitor, I had mixed opinions about Big Biba (see reviews of "The Biba Experience"), it was still a wonder to behold. Time has done nothing to dilute that wonderment. In fact some of the most successful retail concepts (Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters for example) lightly but lovingly tiptoe down the Biba path. "Big Biba" is a classy 96 pages of heavyweight stock including a repro of the 16-page Opening Day Newspaper and a garment hangtag for use as a bookmark. Barbara Hulanicki herself writes the forward and doesn't dwell too much on the crash-and-burn aspect of the Biba phenomenom. As she shouldn't. Biba was obviously a product of its times, and now we have this lovely book for all time.

What else can I say but buy this book to travel back to a time when fashion was fun! A great read and a treasure to own.

This book brought back the wonderful world of Big Biba. I was 19 and in London for the first time when my friend and I walked into Big Biba. What an amazing site--I felt like Alice in Wonderland just stepping into a fantastic new world. We had never seen anything so splendid, creative, beautiful. We didn't have much money to spend but I bought eye shadow, lipgloss, and grapefruit face toner. I kept the bottle for years as a keepsake. I wish the book had even more photos but the ones that are in it are wonderful. What a great way to relive these memories! I recommend this book for anyone interested in fashion, design, the 1970's, or if you were ever lucky enough to have visited Big Biba.

What a beautiful book this is.It is truly amazing
there was actually a store this mystical & magical
in existance.It truly was gorgeous.I hope whomever
owns this building now takes excellently good care
of it.I only visited London once in 1980, by then
ofcourse, BIBA was gone and unfortunately, Carnaby
Street was looking a bit run down too, but I know I
would have gone if I had only known.

This book makes me want to go back in time and step out in 60's London and experience Big Biba. Such a great story with so many fantastic photos that really capture the punkiness of the atmostphere. Great book. I highly recommend experiencing Big Biba.