6 minute read
Destination Southwark
Destination of choice for businesses
The borough of Southwark is a hive of activity and opportunity. Boasting a rich and proud history, it has a strong sense of community and a fantastic ability to transform the lives of the people who work and live there.
Southwark benefits from being a part of London, a global city and international destination of choice for dozens of businesses across a wide range of sectors – particularly culture and the arts.
It is home to world-famous attractions including the Tate Modern, Borough Market, Tower Bridge and Dulwich Picture Gallery, as well the Shard which is considered by many to be an architectural jewel in London’s crown.
Bankside is one of London’s leading cultural quarters, having evolved from a rich, diverse and authentic heritage.
Kate Poulter of Better Bankside Business Improvement District (BID) says: “This is a place where people have come to experience culture for more than one thousand years. It’s now home to some of London’s most visited and renowned cultural institutions.
“With five of London’s bridges leading to the area, and various major transport hubs within easy reach, Bankside is a very connected neighbourhood. It’s a well-known but ever-evolving part of the city. Ghost signs are a visible insight into Bankside’s commercial heritage and the architecture of the neighbourhood reveals layers of industrial history, from Victorian warehousing to The Hop Exchange, Bankside Power Station and mighty railway arches. Today, talent in Bankside powers the new economy – from architects and designers to Borough Market’s artisan producers.”
The BID leads positive economic, environmental and social action in the neighbourhood, empowering participation within the community, delivering imaginative solutions to urban challenges and celebrating the distinct character of the area. The emphasis now is on economic renewal and recovery.
Kate says: “After an extraordinary year, we’re looking forward to seeing the energy returning to Bankside as people filter back into workplaces, reigniting the buzz that makes our neighbourhood so special and vibrant. City districts globally have experienced rapid change, and we anticipate more to come.
“We’ve brought forward various new projects and services to support businesses, whether they’re working remotely or continuing to operate in the area. We’ve developed a Roadmap to Return for Bankside’s businesses to support them through the transition back to the area and to incentivise local employees to rediscover the neighbourhood. Just some of the practical initiatives we have in place include deep cleans to the external entrances of buildings, a new secure cycle park, Bankside bike trains, and a host of online events focused on wellbeing and new business challenges.”
The Dixon Hotel, too, is looking forward to the future with a healthy degree of optimism.
Hasham Soliman, General Manager of the boutique venue, says: “Southwark is such a great destination for tourists, residents and businesses. It has fantastic transport links and an abundance of great venues and attractions to explore. In addition to the history of Tower Bridge and the cornucopia of options at Borough Market, all of the theatres, galleries and leisure entertainment on the Southbank is amazing and a must-try experience.”
The Dixon Hotel has several exciting plans once it’s allowed to reopen again. The main one is the repositioning of Provisioners restaurant with a new Italianfocused cuisine made with British produce.
Hasham says: “To encourage more business visitors to The Dixon, the number one priority is to ensure we are COVID-safe, AA-certified and the team appropriately trained. Furthermore, we have a flexible cancellation policy, offer attractive rates and our meeting rooms and social shared working space offer strong Wi-Fi and state-of-the-art technology for our guests.” The popular Borough Market remained open for business throughout lockdown, providing essential produce to the local community with social distancing measures in place. The venue’s restaurants will start serving outdoors again in April, making use of the ample space on site for al fresco dining.
Darren Henaghan, Managing Director at the market, says: “It’ll be great to have that buzz back in the evenings: selling produce is at the core of what we do, but the communal experience of sharing good food is also a fundamental part of life at the market.
“We’re also continuing to develop our digital offering. When the pandemic first hit, we rapidly increased the scale and reach of our Borough Market Online delivery service, taking it beyond London for the first time. While we remain convinced of the social benefits of coming together to shop at a market, we also see the value in our traders’ exceptional, sustainably produced food getting to people who can’t make it here in person. Our events and publications also moved online, meaning that our conversations about food production and cookery reached new audiences. We can’t wait to be able to once again host in-person events, but that wider digital engagement will definitely carry on.”
Artists impression of the new High Street layout
Some exciting new plans for the market are in the pipeline. Borough Market Online is launching a new seasonal produce subscription service, while the new Friends of Borough Market scheme will give regular customers a chance to support the venue’s charitable activities and improvements to public spaces while enjoying a wide range of membership benefits.
These initiatives are playing a part in promoting Southwark as a great place in which to live and do business.
Darren says: “Southwark has a large, settled and highly diverse residential community and a wealth of small, innovative businesses. This diversity is a big part of the area’s dynamism.
“Southwark also has an incredible heritage when it comes to the production, importation and sale of food, of which Borough Market is just a small part: this has been London’s larder for hundreds of years and it remains a real haven for people who love to eat.” Darren’s view that the borough has much to offer is shared by Russell Dryden, Manager of Blue Bermondsey BID which was established in 2014.
Russell says: “The cultural offer is immense, with an abundance of things to do and see throughout the borough. If you venture into the heartlands beyond the obvious hotspots close to the river, you can really explore the local communities and fascinating heritage.
“Since 2014 we’ve worked on countless inspiring initiatives, including major improvement works to the market place and high street after our BID and other partners secured £2 million from the Mayor of London’s LEAP Good Growth Fund.”
Blue Bermondsey has managed to maintain most of its services throughout the pandemic and supported the business community as much as possible.
Russell says: “When the initial lockdown kicked in, we launched an online business directory and cargo bike delivery service for those essentials that were able to keep operating. We worked closely with our neighbouring BIDs and the council to feed into the process of ensuring that the grants, support and crucial information available to businesses was communicated as effectively as possible. During the recovery phase we’ll be flexible and responsive to what our businesses require from us as an organisation elected to represent them.”
