MORE than a hundred fans turned up to watch top chef Raymond Blanc give a cookery demonstration at the new Fenwicks store.
The £30 million refurbishment has seen the former Williams and Griffins department transformed to double the size of its retail area to include new ranges.
Michael Kors, Edwin, Jo Malone and Olivia Burton are all new arrivals along with Jo Malone, Aveda, Bobbi Brown and Tom Ford in the fragrance hall.
The launch is the culmination of two years work including the closure of the High Street while materials were brought in by crane.
Raymond, Michelin-starred owner of Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons in Oxfordshire, prepared three courses in front of shoppers in a kitchen especially constructed by designers Nicholas Antony, based in Colchester.
His range of cookware is among those on sale and it was these he used in his demonstration which included creating a beetroot salad and steak cooked in water.
He said he was delighted to be helping with the opening of Fenwicks and said Colchester was a place very well-known to him since the 1970s.
"It is probably the first town I knew and that is because of its oysters.
"I remember paying a huge premium to have them in my restaurant rather than the Fine de Claire because I find them beautiful, more meaty, more saline and more delicious."
After the demonstration, which some had arrived two hours early for, the chef signed copies of his latest book.