Made in London: From Workshops to Factories

A book by Carmel King and Mark Brearley. Merrell Publishers 2022.

Hardback. 256 pages. 900 colour illustrations. 29 x 22.5 cm (11.5 x 8.75 in)

A wide-ranging survey of London's current thriving manufacturing scene, with an 8 page illustrated introduction by Mark Brearley, and features on 50 producers across London (arranged into chapters as varied as Metalwork, Arts & Entertainment and Food & Drink), each one with a concise description (by Clare Dowdy) and a set of photographs by Carmel King.

Walking through London’s busy streets, you would not imagine that the city boasts one of the world’s most diverse manufacturing scenes. But throughout its 32 boroughs, people are making propellers, bicycles, ballet shoes, military uniforms, cardboard packaging, neon signs, umbrellas, chocolate truffles, furniture, beer, bread, and much more. Today there are around 4000 manufacturers based in Greater London, continuing the city’s rich heritage of making. While producing world-class goods, and meeting the city’s daily needs, they are all jostling for space and dealing with familiar challenges, such as rising rents and trying to keep developers at bay. This book provides a fascinating glimpse behind the doors of London’s making companies: the processes and spaces that are generally hidden from view, and the people who work there, from sole traders to teams numbering in the hundreds. Fifty businesses are featured, ranging from the Tate & Lyle sugar refinery in Silvertown, one of the capital’s largest plants; to William Say, fourth-generation tin-can makers, in Bermondsey; Growing Underground, a salad farm in an old air-raid shelters under the streets of Clapham; and Jost Haas, Britain’s last glass-eye maker, in Mill Hill. Made in London is a timely celebration of the vibrant manufacturing scene that contributes so much to the creativity, vitality and economy of the city.

ISBN: 978-1-8589-4702-0

Carmel King is a photographer who has spent more than a decade documenting craftspeople and manufacturers across the British Isles. Inspired by her own family’s three-generation textile firm, she is passionate about capturing images of crafts and manufacture; celebrating the best of British making and industry.

Mark Brearley is an architect and urbanist with special expertise in urban industry and its future. He is currently Professor of Urbanism at London Metropolitan University’s School of Art, Architecture and Design. Until 2013 he worked for the Mayor of London as Head of Design for London at the Greater London Authority. He is also proprietor of the long-established London tray and trolley manufacturer Kaymet, and for the past decade has been cataloguing London manufacturers.

Clare Dowdy is a freelance journalist, editor, copywriter and curator. She has written about design, architecture and manufacturing for the Financial Times, Monocle, Wallpaper and BBC.com, and edited the online magazine Furnace, which championed factories.