Haringay Warehouse District - Gentrification's Last Frontier
20th October 2021
Formerly Haringay’s industrial area, little industry now remains. This is now an area of warehousing hemmed between the housing estates off Seven Sisters Road and the Victorian terraced streets off Green Lanes.
The area was originally developed at the start of the 20th Century and was known, amongst other things, for piano manufacturing, furniture making, industrial thermometers, radio valves, cathod ray tubes and confectionary. The old Maynards factory is still an imposing presence on Vale Road.
By the 1980’s things had changed and the bigger industry had been replaced by small-scale garment manufacture. In the 90’s creative industries began to get a foothold. A thriving community of artists and entrepreneurs had moved in and HWD built a reputation for its underground party scene, led by this cast of creative lodgers.
This was the cradle of alternative living, inhabited by a largely creative community whose development of HWD was in the main undertaken without official sanction. It has been a challenge to balance the development of the area, so that it retains its urban edge, while at the same time allowing growth. Both the local landlords and the council have now embraced the vision of the original warehouse lodgers who invaded the area. Rather than bringing in the wrecking ball and replacing the warehouses with high rises made of glass and steel, landlords have strived to retain HWD’s mixed identity.
There’s still a gritty edge to the area, seen reflected in the photographs of young urban cool photographer Josh Haselden.
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‘Drew the First’ on the Streets of Haringay Warehouse District – Photographs by Josh Haselden
At the same time, warehouses are giving way to other uses. The Cotton Store Studio in Florentia Clothing Village, and The Store Cupboard Studio on Vale Road are in spaces previously used as fabric warehouses. Monolith Studio on Hermitage Road is in a converted piano factory. These are a new generation of creative businesses that still wish to embrace the character of the area and its buildings.
The Cotton Store in Florentia Clothing Village
The Cotton Store offers an extremely versatile and individual way of shooting. Character is everywhere in this location and can really be made into your own. The striking concrete wall and floor provides a cool, industrial look while the cast iron spiral staircase is much softer. And if it's retro chic you're after then the 50's style pannelled wall and wide variety of props are at your disposal.
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The Store Cupboard on Vale Road
Another completely flexible studio is The Store Cupboard. This bright and airy space has a variety of backdrops and props with a simple yet very effective result. As well as this, the location offers a fully functioning kitchen and boasts an island that can be rolled about the studio to suit the shoots needs.
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Monolith on Hermitage Road
This large and studio offers an authentic shooting experience, whether that be for film or photography. High ceilings, exposed brickwork and period features add to charm of this location. Equally it has a kitchen, two offices and lounge space, making it extremely practical and comfortable for shoot days.
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For some HWD will already be too gentrified, for others it may not have come far enough. Enjoy this area while it retains the balance of just the right side of wrong, where you still find characters and character buildings.
The clumsy waves of big money are already appearing on the horizon. However, in contrast to the erosion of artistic areas like Hackney Wick, the bottom-up regeneration of HWD seems to have kept the big developers at bay. This area could now be described as loosely gentrified and what that means is that it has retained its creative community of artists and entrepreneurs and hence its identity.