Being based in Shoreditch has
(and always will be) a colourful affair. We couldn’t wish to be in a more
inspiring place, full of such interesting and creative people. Every street is
bedazzled with mind-boggling graffiti, the galleries burst with emerging artists
latest creations and the air is thick with artistic spirit, entrepreneurial
vibes and a deep, pulsating heartbeat of historical grittiness against a
backdrop of dark red-bricked Victorian ghosts of past. This, is London. Real
Landan.
We’ve spent a blissful seven
months in our new home. It was a particularly poignant to move here, after
starting the business 10 years ago from a small office in Harrow, North London.
Moving meant moving up. Moving
meant new exciting neighbours. Moving meant being surrounded by people that
loved the very same things as us, same passions, similar businesses, same mind-set,
the creative industry is our
industry. A little like an Italian moving into Little Italy in New York, this
was our homecoming.
Summer was spent exploring
backstreets, admiring the people-watchers outside the Brick Lane Coffee shop, and
sampling the incredible food in its infamous cafes, restaurants and bars. We
took leisurely walks back to train & tube stations and admired the area
with new eyes. This really is a special place.
The future of the area is
under speculation and none of us know what it will become in the coming years.
Word is spreading fast and it wont be long before the designer outlets get
their hands on some of the properties here. As they come, the prices will inevitably
soar. Where will the artists go? The start-ups, the local businesses?
The towering blocks of
apartments being built, the countless refurbishments on every street, and the
buzz of development in the air - it’s hard to believe we only emerged from the
recession at the end of 2012. There’s money being spent here, and in big
numbers.
Sure, its good for now and
its exciting to be in a place that now so many companies want a slice of the
action. We might just be in an exciting era, before the tourists outnumber the
locals, before the high-rise apartments outnumber the rich red Victorian
buildings, and before the high-street chains outnumber the independents; the
essence of Shoreditch.
Whatever era we’re now in, and for however it may change in the future, none of us can really say. All we know is that being here, right here, right now, feels very special indeed.
Whatever era we’re now in, and for however it may change in the future, none of us can really say. All we know is that being here, right here, right now, feels very special indeed.
Shoreditch 2013.
