On the 19th and 20th September, Salad Days Market returned to Battersea Power Station for its latest South London pop-up, bringing more than 35 independent brands together under one roof.
From handmade products, crochet creations to body-care products, the market gave small businesses an opportunity to showcase their work and connect directly with customers.
Founded in 2019 by twin sisters Daisy Middlecote-Tinker and Olivia Odlum-Tinker, Salad Days Market began in a room above a library in Crystal Palace and has since grown to more than 100 markets across London. What started as a small community shopping event rooted in South London has developed into a space for independent businesses and like-minded creatives to connect.
With a shared background in fashion, self-described lifelong shopaholics Daisy and Liv always imagined working together, owning a department shop filled with all their favourite things. Often going to Merton Abbey Mills and travelling around London for markets, the sisters became inspired to bring this early vision into reality in the form of a Christmas market for South Londoners. “We had no experience, Daisy said,
“but the idea came to us, and we both felt really compelled to do it, and it just felt like this really exciting, fun thing that we could work on together. And before we knew it, we were organising the market.”
Daisy and Liv say the market has always been shaped by their connection to South London.
“We wanted to do something that was very South London, working with people within South London, and putting on a cool event in our areas of South London for people from South London.” Daisy said
As Salad Days Market continues to grow, Daisy and Liv say the reason people keep returning is because of the atmosphere they’ve worked hard to build ‘with the most talented people ever’. The variety in traders creates what they describe as a ‘free, easy, friendly, positive community’ where creatives can build connections and be stress-free. Growing up in a family of craftspeople inspired the sisters’ purpose to bring visibility to small businesses and spread positivity.
“It supports creativity, it supports artists,” Daisy said.
“It supports everything that I think is positive.”
Running the market together as sisters has become one of the most defining parts of their journey.
”Obviously being twins, we’re best friends, we’re exactly the same,” Daisy said.
“ We get along and we never argue. We are really kind of cohesive in the way that we work together, and I think our strength really is in working together, we really complement each other.”
Their closeness, they say, has made the experience ‘fun’.
Looking ahead, their big next goal is to host Salad Days Market at the Tate Modern while continuing to discover small businesses, work with upcoming makers “and be at the forefront of what we think is on trend, cool and exciting.” Their advice for anyone entering the creative industry is to start today, join communities and
“dont let not being the best stop you from doing it… sometimes that’s where true creativity and originality is” Liv said.
The community Daisy and Liv describe is reflected in the experiences of the stallholders themselves including Iké Muotoh, owner of Dibia. Dibia is a body care rituals business made from African botanical ingredients. Iké began making products during the pandemic as a break from long hours spent in front of a screen, creating body-care rituals that reminded him of home in Nigeria
For Iké, Salad Days Market has been instrumental in helping Dibia reach a wider customer base and become part of an engaged community that values small independent businesses.
“Everytime I get to sell with them, it’s amazing because they really know how to reach their core customers,” he said
“They really strive to make everyone feel comfortable and welcome and have a good day.”
This visibility has inspired Iké’s next goal to work full-time on Dibia. Currently balancing the business with his corporate job, he hopes to gain financial independence to focus on his craft and share his “love of fragrance and body care rituals with a bigger, wider audience.”
Salad Days Market is a testament to the creativity in South London, offering a platform where independent businesses can be seen, grow and connect.
Salad Days Market Social Media:
Instagram: @saladdaysmarketlondon
TikTok: @saladdaysmarket
Dibia Social Media:
