Town Takeover
The Town Takeover has brought Battle to the Town Centre this summer.
Businesses were given the opportunity to apply for funding from the Government of Jersey to transform their shopfronts into floral masterpieces based on the themes of this year’s Battle of Flowers entries.
A total of 16 businesses across various industries, including hospitality, retail, charity, and community, were awarded funding to transform their shopfronts.
The displays will be in place until Friday 12th September, and will feature elements of the floats after the parades on 8th and 9th August.
You can join in the fun by voting for your favourite display. Click here to vote now.
Rosie’s Tea Room (Market Street) – English Country Garden
Rosie’s Tea Rooms is a traditional tea room and one of the oldest in Jersey, with an outside display of country garden flowers spilling over next door to the pottery shop. We hope you like what we have created; you won’t find bigger baskets anywhere in town!
Jersey Skin (The Parade) – Wickedly Popular
Jersey Skin proudly teamed up for the Wickedly Popular themed window – a spellbinding visual experience inspired by a fusion of the movie poster and the iconic West End stage show. This imaginative green and pink display paid homage to the beloved Oz universe while adding a handcrafted, eco-conscious twist to the tale.
At its heart was a handmade smoking dragon, exhaling mist with theatrical flair, and an Emerald City sculpted entirely from recycled glass bottles, glowing with magical green light. From the swirling yellow brick road to glittering ruby slippers and shadowy silhouettes of witches, both good and wicked, the window captured the most unforgettable moments of the infamous fairytale.
This collaboration was a celebration of creativity, sustainability, and local craft — a visual journey that delighted passersby and perfectly reflected Jersey Skin’s passion for storytelling and handcrafted beauty.
Santander Work Café (Charing Cross) – English Country Garden
To celebrate this year’s Battle of Flowers, we proudly aligned our display with the Parish of St Peter’s charming English Country Garden float. The concept was brought to life by Martyn Aubert of local design agency The Idea Works, who created a stunning installation framing the main entrance to the Santander Work Café. The display was beautifully realised by Clara Barthorp of Wild Thyme, whose floral artistry has transformed the space into a vibrant and inviting archway of pink, red, and white blooms. The arrangement not only complements the historic character of the building but also offers a warm and picturesque welcome to all who pass by.
Harriet & Rose (King Street) – Tulips from Amsterdam
The Harriet & Rose Town Takeover display was very much a team effort! Bringing together an English Garden basis (with Rose in our name, we had to lean into that!), the team was keen to work their creative magic on the Tulips from Amsterdam theme by the Friends of Galaad.
Working with Muse More than Flowers, Sveta created – by hand – the incredible foam flower installation which will withhold sun and rain (perfectly Jersey summer proof), Verity – our manager – did the amazing window painting and design, and Clemmie – our assistant manager – took an unloved bicycle found buried in a shed, and intricately painted it with Dutch pottery inspired motifs.
All of the team designed and drew luggage tags for our vintage luggage in the window, and we are thrilled to have been invited to be part of the Town Takeover!
De Gruchys (King Street) – English Country Garden
Rivoli (King Street) – Tulips from Amsterdam
We loved the boldness of tulips for Rivoli and wanted to create a display that would stand out. We are loving seeing so many people standing underneath the archway to have their photos taken. We’ll be including two characters in traditional Dutch dress from the float after the Battle.
STORY by Rivoli (King Street) – Barbie
We chose the Barbie theme for STORY by Rivoli because she is such an iconic figure and symbol of beauty, empowerment, and limitless potential. It fits well with all the fabulous jewellery brands that we stock. We’ll hopefully be including a palm tree from the Barbie float to sit alongside the bright pink flowers, floral ice creams, and strands of pearls that are adorning the shop front.
Hugo’s (Halkett Street) – Meet the Veggies
Hugo’s brings the “Meet the Veggies” theme to life for the Battle of Flowers.
When the list of this year’s Battle of Flowers themes was released, we wanted to do something unique, something that truly reflected who we are. Claire from Eden by Claire suggested the theme “Meet the Veggies,” and it immediately felt like the perfect match for Hugo’s.
As a restaurant, vegetables are at the heart of what we do. This theme allowed us to showcase our passion for fresh, vibrant produce, much of which we strive to source locally. It’s a fun, colourful way to celebrate the ingredients we work with every day.
The colour scheme we’ve used throughout the installation blends seamlessly with our outdoor space, lush greens paired with playful splashes of colour bring the display to life and create a warm, welcoming atmosphere for our guests.
We’re thrilled to be part of this year’s celebration and can’t wait for everyone to come and see what a gorgeous entrance we have.
Amelie (Halkett Street) – Thneedville
Michelle and the team at Amélie Concept Store are absolutely thrilled to be part of the Town Takeover, St Helier in Bloom Competition!
After some thoughts and discussion with Claire Evans, our neighbour and the superb florist of Eden by Claire, we came up with the theme Thneedville from Amanda’s float, which we feel would suit Amelie Joyful Living Store perfectly. It is colourful, fun and happy, all of the qualities which represent the brand.
We think that it’s such a wonderful idea to create a floral Parish, as Michelle was recently inspired when she visited London and went to Sloane Square and saw the amazing installations that all the businesses there had displayed as part of the Chelsea Flower Show Week. The atmosphere was buzzing, and the effort that the retail community had put in was fully rewarded.
We couldn’t be happier with the finished installation, which makes everyone smile and brings together our wonderful newly landscaped precinct here in Halkett Street, a very special little corner of St. Helier.
Please vote for us, and share the love for our wonderful community!
Fine & Country (King Street) – English Country Garden
Fine & Country Company sells exceptional homes, which are beautifully presented, so we intended to create an English Country Garden to reflect these same standards. The aim was to create a design that would be long-lasting, natural, and in a minimalistic colour palette, in keeping with the Fine & Country style and ethos. Working in coordination with St Peter’s Float and Fine & Country, Louise created a design of three parts. A traditional cottage garden, a ‘messy’ kitchen garden area, with a seated area sandwiched between them.
She created a classic herbaceous border in the first section, by layering plants with different texture, forms, and heights to create a lush and visually appealing garden. To heighten the senses, she specifically selected fragranced plants. The middle section contains a park bench, sourced from Acorn, to encourage visitors to sit and enjoy the space, and the messy overgrown kitchen garden area with herbs moss ready to place one of the St Peters’ elements (a wheelbarrow).
In the interim, from now till the 11th August, vintage floral dogs are displayed, which are normally on display at the Pallot Steam & Motor Museum. The dogs were made by Florence Bechelet and formed part of her 101 Dalmatians float. The date of when the 101 Dalmatians float appeared is unknown, but Ms Bechelet exhibited in the Battle of Flowers for 78 years. All of her floats were organic, made using wildflowers and hare’s tails. She died in Sept 2012, aged 94, and she ran the Battle of Flowers Museum in St Ouen for many years – 1971 to 2011.
Banjos (Beresford Street) – Jukebox Live
Inspired by the Parish of St Helier’s “Jukebox Live” float, our floral installation is a vibrant celebration of both our building’s unique entertainment legacy and the wider music scene in St Helier.
Located at 8 Beresford Street, Banjo’s site boasts a rich history as an entertainment venue. This history is personal to us: the owners’ grandfather was a renowned banjo player, and his original instrument now proudly resides in our wine cellar. Our display seeks to honour this musical legacy, while visually linking Banjo’s cultural significance with St Helier’s broader heritage as a hub of creativity, music, and connection.
The design incorporates bold floral blocks of colour arranged in dynamic, flowing forms – reminiscent of music emanating from a jukebox – along with props like recycled CDs and vinyls to celebrate music throughout the decades. The floral base is formed of eco-silk flowers and foliage, made from 100% recycled fabric and over 50% recycled plastic, to give vibrant colour and resilience throughout the display period. These are layered with textured, dyed natural elements, such as dried gypsophila, to add depth and movement.
Funky guitar-shaped elements invite passersby to get involved, with QR codes to take you to a playlist of jukebox classics, so viewers of the display can join us on not only a visual journey, but also a journey through music.
Cancer Research (Halkett Place) – Dreams
Portuguese Cultural and Sports Centre (Beresford Street) – INKOSI (The Lion King)
Broadlands (Library Place) – Thneedville
Jersey Hospice Store, St Helier (Union Street) – Dragon’s Edge, A Race to the Edge
In keeping with the float theme of Dragon’s Edge, which aligns closely to Jersey Hospice Care’s ‘Dragon Boat Festival’ on September 13th, our window display represents a scene from ‘Dragon’s Edge – Race to the Edge’.
Using durable materials, nature’s gifts, and donated items, taking inspiration from the Netflix show and from our very own Dragon Boat Festival, our windows depict two races to the Edge. One, a Viking-style boat race with 2 boats. The prows of each boat were carved in the style of dragon heads. The second race is taking place in the skies, in the upper part of the windows. This depicts two dragons featured in the series Dragon’s Edge: Toothless and Meatlug.
The finished look incorporates many different colourful and natural materials with flowers donning all the dragons, shields, and prows, with nature’s gifts adorning the mountain scene backdrop.
Credits: Jen McEwan (designer and project lead), Jersey Hospice Care Team (supporting all aspects including sourcing, dressing, construction, and assembly), Jersey Hospice Care Volunteers (carpentry and build works), and Romerils (support on supply of materials).
Jersey Fish Market (Beresford Street) – Funky Fish and Jersey Central Market (Halkett Place) – Liberation 80
The Central and Fish Markets are extremely delighted to take part in the “Town Takeover” for the Battle of Flowers, in the heart of the Town Centre.
We have two installations, one on the gates of Halkett Place for the Central Market, which has been paired with St Lawrence’s senior float, Liberation 80. Liberation is very important to the Island, which commemorates the end of the German occupation during World War II, and signifies the return of freedom, hope, and the enduring Jersey spirit – something to be proud of.
The second installation is on the Beresford Street gate of the Fish Market, pairing with St Brelade’s senior float, Funky Fish. Ideal for the Fish Market, this reflects the offer of fresh seafood, showing the connection with the community, a cultural hub where traditions, local knowledge, and the bounty of the sea come together.
All of the installations have re-used items where possible, and will again be re-used once taken down, it has been a delight to be part of this, and it would not have been possible without the help and hard work of the Market Florists, Diane from Appleblossoms, Nelia from Market Flowers and Cathy from Bobbys Florist, so a huge thank you.
