Spatial Design

Project, Migration Museum Makers Market Concept Store

Spatial Designer, Studio Lucy Sanderson 

Photography, Alina zum Hebel

Modular Stalls, Robert McCloud & Langa Legge

Fat Lazy Boy, Rosa

Migrant Makers Market – new concept store opens in London shopping centre exclusively selling products from migrant-owned businesses

At a time when the British high street is dominated by store closures, the Migration Museum launches an immersive concept store to showcase the vibrancy of business in Britain when borders remain open. On 9 April, doors open at the Migrant Makers Market in London – a cause-led concept store and creative makerspace dedicated exclusively to selling products from migrant-owned businesses and creators. The first-of-its-kind store will arrive in Lewisham Shopping Centre for 12 months, stocking its shelves with everything from food and fashion to jewellery and homeware, alongside a programme of free and interactive workshops led by migrant entrepreneurs.

 Now more than ever, the future of the high street is in question. While store closures are on the rise, the Migrant Makers Market paints a picture of the vibrancy and creativity that cultural exchange can bring to retail when Britain remains open. Most importantly, it is providing a much-needed platform for underrepresented makers, brands and businesses that otherwise aren’t available in high street spaces, welcoming shoppers to discover and support them. Brought to you by the Migration Museum, the concept store will tell the stories of the entrepreneurs behind them. 

Entirely transforming its existing visitor shop, the Migration Museum has created a living and breathing retail space to accompany its latest exhibition, Taking Care of Business, which highlights stories of migrant entrepreneurship past and present and how it has shaped life in Britain. Based in the heart of Lewisham, London’s Borough of Culture for 2022, the Migration Museum has made its home in a diverse and thriving entrepreneurial community. Now, visitors will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in a concept store within a museum within a shopping centre.

“There couldn’t be a more fitting time or place to be opening the UK’s first concept store exclusively selling migrant-made brands and goods. In the midst of one of the largest refugee crises we’ve seen for generations, we want to welcome people to our home in a busy London shopping centre to discover and learn about the migrant entrepreneurs keeping British business thriving and to provide a platform for underrepresented makers to reach new customers,” says Robyn Kasozi, Head of Public Engagement at the Migration Museum. 

Lucy Sanderson, a Lewisham-based designer known for her multidisciplinary spatial design, was chosen  to create the Migrant Makers Market following an open call to local artists and designers. Sanderson’s design uses a bold colour palette that references the borough of Lewisham's blue and yellow brand identity. A glossy modular ‘U’-shaped market-stall system, developed and welded in Lewisham, is easily adaptable for different produce; shelving and storage units painted in Lewisham blue wrap around the space; and pegboards installed above the storage units can be easily adapted to display new products in a variety of ways. The secondary colour is added by yellow perspex signage with a playful bungee and toggle system. The logo mimics the repeat-pattern signage used during store closures that has become a familiar aesthetic across British high streets and shopping centres.

“My spatial design for the Migrant Makers Market is inspired by the design language of high streets, markets and shopping centres across the UK, while honouring its home in the heart of Lewisham. The logo uses the same typeface as on off-the-shelf ‘closing down’ posters, acknowledging the challenging circumstances that the British high street currently faces. The design honours the iconic brands of the past, many of which themselves were founded by immigrants, while also celebrating and providing a platform for emerging migrant-founded brands and businesses of the future,” says Lucy Sanderson, founder of Studio Lucy Sanderson and designer of the Migrant Makers Market.

Amidst Sanderson’s enticingly bold and colourful spatial design, the experiential shopping space will welcome customers to learn about the migrant heritage and stories of the featured businesses. These include Iṣura, which celebrates celebrates the beauty of the African diaspora through its jewellery pieces; Yi Crafts, whose clothing and embroidery combines traditional Chinese costume elements with Western techniques; award-winning Guyanese hot sauce makers Pat & Pinky’s; and functional retro-style cycle-bag specialists Goodordering. The makerspace within the store will be dedicated to hosting workshops and masterclasses where customers can meet the makers, learn techniques and participate in activities ranging from zine making to baby massage, embroidery to coffee tasting. Products sold in the Migrant Makers Market will also be available to purchase online from the Migration Museum’s online shop.