Constructive Lives
New shop Constructive Lives arrived with a splash of bright colour on the corner of Portobello and Golborne Roads last October. Clocks, maps, phones, Trellick mugs (a top seller), furniture, lighting – they’re all there and they all have a quirky style of their own.
Business partners Fiona Hannafin and Chuko Ojiri are behind the shop which sells a stylish range of furniture and interior accessories. Fiona has Irish roots and Chuko is originally from Nigeria.
'We had wanted to move into the Portobello area for some time, so we’d had our eye open for likely properties,’ says Fiona. ‘Then this shop came up and we thought it was ideal for us.’
‘We worked with design agency Multistorey to create an eye-catching design for the exterior. The blocks of colour are based on the geometric murals of the Ndebele people of South Africa and the patterns also reflect the bold stripes of the nearby zebra crossing.’
Fiona and Chuko run another shop in Spitalfields - called In Spitalfields - which has been open for 16 years. It’s a larger shop with a wider stock, but Fiona says they’ve picked many of the best items from there to feature in the Golborne Road Store.
‘We travel the world - Japan, the States, Europe - looking for original items to sell. We offer functional everyday products with a design edge and we like to keep prices as low as possible, although original quality design does tend to come at a price.
‘I’m very happy to be in this neighbourhood with its strong community feel,’ says Fiona. 'Other shopkeepers have made a point of introducing themselves and wishing us well.
‘This end of Portobello Road is by far the most interesting and diverse nowadays. Further south has gone much more upmarket whereas Golborne Road really reflects the variety and energy of London.’
Constructive Lives website
312 Portobello Road, W10
020 8969 1399