Seven Dials names pop-up incubator winners

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Mar 8, 2021

The Seven Dials area of London is to welcome four emerging, female-led brands via individual pop-up retail space, major landlord Shaftesbury said on Monday.

It’s part of the property giant’s all-new 'Start Up with Seven Dials' initiative. That's a competition developed to celebrate and support budding UK brands that either launched or developed their businesses in the face of Covid-19. It offered them the opportunity to operate from the key retail destinations in summer 2021.

Naming the winners on International Women’s Day, it said this year’s theme of #ChooseToChallenge “encourages inclusive support and celebration of women’s achievements”.

The four London-based brands were selected from a pool of 30 entrants with lifestyle brand Tihara Smith selected as the overall winner. 

Tihara, a graduate of the University for the Creative Arts Epsom, launched her label after exhibiting her original Windrush-inspired collection at Graduate Fashion Week 2018. Its inspiration includes a mix of the Caribbean and London and also comes with “vibrant and distinctive stationery, accessories, gifts and prints, complemented by a customised, made-to-order service”.

Her pop-up will come with a complete store fit-out and assignment of a personal brand mentor. 

The three runners up who also get their own spaces include curated homewares brand Olive Jennings, founded by designer Amy Harrison-Mason. It offers hand-made dried flower arrangements, bespoke room mists and sustainable home accessories.

Meanwhile eco-friendly yoga brand Kati Kaia combines founder Kati Treble’s immersive abstract art with traditional yoga accessories. The pop-up will feature natural, vegan yoga mats, newly launched Mala Jewellery, and a series of holistic workshops and activations.

Finally, Billi London, is claimed to offer the world’s first biodegradable tights, which are designed in London and made in Italy. Following extensive work on research and prototypes, the pop-up will be a key milestone for co-founders Sophie and Marie “in changing consumer behaviour towards tights and building awareness for its sustainable alternatives”.