At the Heart of the Community: Brixton Village
In the heart of Brixton, partially concealed amidst the thriving commerce beneath the railway bridge, an oversized blue door announces the entrance to Brixton Village.
Also known as Granville Arcade, Brixton Village is a sprawling indoor market that until late last year was slowly but certainly limping towards obsolescence.
The property company managing the market hadn’t received a rental enquiry in 18 months and 20 shop units stood empty by the time they realized radical action was necessary. So they offered up the units for three months, rent-free and brought in the Space Makers Agency (SMA) to manage the project.
“You walk in and see this beautiful 1930s structure with skylights and arcades – a very unique place – to see it on its knees was terrible.” Julia Shalet, the SMA project manager for this scheme, sits in a café in the Village, her flyaway hair in bunches, dressed casually in jeans and a sleeveless top, talking animatedly about what it took to turn around the ailing market. “One end of the market was pretty vibrant. The traditional grocers, fish and meat traders, hair shops and restaurants were doing well. But the other half of the market was derelict.”
Brought on board in October of last year, Shalet went straight to work. “We held an open night and said these spaces are going to be rent free for three months, come down and have a look.” The event was held on a cold night in November yet 350 people turned up demonstrating not only a widespread interest in entrepreneurship but also the continued attraction of Brixton as a location.
100 applications were proffered for 20 spaces. In the subsequent selection process the needs of the local community figured at the head of all decisions. “The thing about empty spaces is you want to reclaim them for the community, make them a place where local people want to come.” Nothing was chosen that might pose a direct threat to existing traders. People who lived in or who had ties to Brixton were prioritised. If the proposal was a food venture Shalet wanted traders who would source their food locally thereby keeping profits in the local community.
By Christmas most of the empty units were filled: “It’s all about getting something out there as quickly as possible,” Shalet says with a smile, “it has that slight edge of chaos but there’s also magic in the speed.”
The organic regeneration of Brixton village has birthed an exciting tangle of businesses. Etta Burrell runs Etta’s Seafood Kitchen on 6th Avenue. A spry, middle-aged woman with a passion for food who has catered for film crews and commercial events in the past, she ventured into the Village one Wednesday with a vague idea about enquiring after rental prices: “I was thinking about cooking and putting something back into Brixton but I didn’t know where to start, what to do. I had no finance, nothing.” Serendipitously the day she chose happened to be the day of the SMA open night. Seeing the opportunity of a lifetime she signed up. “This is a fantastic dream,” she says sitting at one of the two tables positioned outside her eatery, “It’s always been my dream to sell good seafood cheaply.”
Over on 1st Avenue clothes designer DK Darlington runs a pop-up boutique. “We’re only here for a month,” he explains, “we’re testing our designs because this is the kind of place where trends get set.” A graduate of the London College of Fashion, 25 year-old Darlington describes his designs as ‘urban chic’: “classic tailor cut jackets that can go casual or smart, lots of leather, natural fibres…” The shop he shares with two other designers is small and located at the quieter end of the Village but Darlingon feels the opportunity to display his wares rent-free is invaluable. He does particularly well on Saturdays when tourists swarm through drawn by the live musicians, dance troupes and interactive workshops SMA organise.
‘Federation Coffee’ sits halfway up 2nd Avenue. It’s run by New Zealanders Nick Coates, 28 and George Wallace, 30 who read about the open night in the Metro newspaper. The friends, already resident in Brixton, were concerned by the dearth of local options for a good caffeine fix; seduced by the rent-free period they determined to set up a ‘real’ coffee shop. Six months later and they’ve signed a one year lease and are living up to their promise by selling coffee made with expertly roasted, properly farmed, fresh (no more than two weeks old) coffee beans. “No one used to come up this end,” Coates says standing behind a counter laden with sumptuous cakes, “there’s a lot more foot traffic now. The weekends are especially busy.”
There is so much to experience in the Brixton Village. From African print clothes to specialist flower designers, quirky second hand shops and pop-up art galleries, it boasts a fascinating meld of art and commerce. One end of the market still sees more visitors than the other and there are further improvements begging to be made, but that is part of the charm. With over 50% of the new businesses now self-sustaining the wind of change that swept over the Village last autumn has led to a creative revival and one of the best experiences Brixton has to offer.
Brixton Village
Open Mon – Sat 10am – 6pm
Thursday Late Nights 10am – 10pm
http://www.facebook.com/brixvill
All pictures (c) Jerry Barnett
July 23rd in Unit 67/68
Want to make (and sell) a product?
As part of Brixton Skill-Share fortnight, London Creative Labs, in association with Remade in Brixton will be hosting “Brixton SkillShare Social Startup Lab;
http://socialstartuplabs. com
Get your practical idea off the ground, in community!