Wandsworth high street businesses pull together to create ‘Earlsfield Village’

While the pandemic isolated people around the country, it pulled shop owners in Earlsfield, Wandsworth, closer together, strengthening their bond as they navigated a tumultuous time for business, writes Ella Kipling.

Now, the owners are harnessing this bond to keep the local high street abuzz during the cost-of-living crisis. 

With the crisis proving detrimental to small businesses and independent shops, the business owners in Garrett Lane have decided to take matters into their own hands this Christmas.

Their idea? A series of pop-ups over the next two months, which will see high street shops sharing their space with home-run small businesses.

The project is aptly titled the ‘Earlsfield Village’. 

Heading up the initiative is Justyna Rostek, who has owned Guinot Salon on the high street for seven years. After chatting in a group chat, shop owners first got together in September.

Rostek was adamant that it would not just be “another networking evening.”

“I hate those. You know, you go, you mingle, you meet people, and then nothing becomes of it. So I always knew that when we meet, we’re going to try and do something to help and boost all of our businesses on the high street,” Rostek says.

A brainstorming session ensued, and the idea of a series of pop-ups was born.

The one thing Rostek never had to worry about was getting other shop owners on board. “Maybe there’s just something special in Earlsfield,” Rostek said. “Everyone wanted to get involved straightaway. Maybe they felt my excitement.” 

Seventeen high street shops are involved with the pop-ups and will be hosting small businesses selling everything from homemade jewellery, to sustainable clothing, juices, and pastries.

The high street shop owners are hosting the small businesses free of charge, and the idea of the pop-up has been so popular that some are sharing their space with three or four of them.

The collaboration between high street shops and home-based businesses will hopefully benefit everyone, Rostek explains. In addition to bringing extra attention to independent businesses, the pop-ups will encourage people in the area to “actually go out and visit each and every shop”. 

When Rostek first opened her salon, she knew of a few other business owners on the high street. Strangely, it was the pandemic that eventually brought them together.

“The pandemic forced all to speak more to each other. You know, look out for each other, because you’re always asking everyone, ‘how is business?’ I don’t think we did before.”

This sense of community, and the shared struggles they are facing as people become more and more reliant on online megastores like Amazon, is why Rostek has spent so much time developing the Earlsfield Village.

The aim? To see more people spending money locally, supporting small businesses, and for the high street to stay and survive at a time when so many are closing down.

Rostek hopes that if local people come in and get a feel for the businesses, drawn to the stores by the pop-up events, they will come back. 

The pop-up events will be taking place at various locations on Garrett Lane on November 18, November 25, and December 2 from 3.30-7pm.

Pictured top: Garratt Lane in Earlsfield where businesses will host pop-ups (Picture: Agata Sroka)