After the success of the inaugural Made in H&F pop-up shop, a new line-up of local artists and designers are in store at Kings Mall shopping centre in King Street.
Hammersmith & Fulham Council has teamed up with Hammersmith Bid and Kings Mall shopping centre to provide the affordable retail space for more than twenty local small business owners.
The Made in H&F shop, which is located next to the Entertainer store in the shopping centre, opened at the end of February.
It includes local painters, jewellery makers, hat makers, t-shirt designers, artists, craft makers and more.
“This affordable pop-up space was a huge success last time so we’re giving local entrepreneurs another pop at growing their businesses,” said Cllr Andrew Jones, H&F Cabinet Member for the Economy and the Arts.
“We’re working hard to provide more affordable and flexible spaces for entrepreneurs in the borough as we strive to make H&F the best place to do business in Europe.”
The small business support project, which runs until August, is part of the council’s Industrial Strategy which aims to create more affordable and flexible co-working hubs in the borough for entrepreneurs, start-ups and existing businesses looking to grow in H&F.
Hammersmith entrepreneur Trevor Dowman (pictured) enjoyed huge success at the first Made in H&F pop-up last year with his ‘crazie vibes’ clothing line.
The Crazie Vibes founder, who has been invited back to the new Made in H&F pop-up, said the opportunity to showcase his wares at the shop was ‘a blessing’.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for local entrepreneurs,” said Trevor. “It’s a great concept and perfect for networking with other business people in the area. I would recommend the pop-up shop to all entrepreneurs just starting out.”
Trevor found out about the council’s business support by chance after his wife Denise (also pictured), a business partner at Crazie Vibes, picked up a leaflet while visiting Hammersmith Town Hall.
He ended up joining the Enterprise Club, a free monthly business advice session, offering support to new local businesses and those looking to grow.
“I didn’t even realise H&F Council offered such support to local entrepreneurs,” added Trevor. “It was a great way to learn about the essentials to running your own business and from there I found out about the pop-up shop opportunity.”
Patricia Bench, BID Director, Hammersmith BID said: “We are so pleased to have the pop-up shop back open in Kings Mall. The feedback we had after the first Made in H&F project was overwhelmingly positive, with both the traders and customers who used the shop in the run-up to Christmas full of praise for the project.
“It was abundantly clear that there was a real hunger from the public for somewhere for them to buy locally made, high-quality products. We were always determined to make sure the outlet returned and seeing the positive response only reinforced that determination.”
Andrew Proctor, Kings Mall Centre Manager said: “We are pleased to be able to welcome Made in H&F back to Kings Mall. The pop-up shop is a very important project to the shopping centre, and as such we are very happy to be able to provide the unit space and financial investment to help make it possible. Hammersmith and Fulham is bursting at the seams with creative talent and this pop-up is one of the ways we are helping the local community showcase their wonderful work.”
