London is one of the most stylish cities in the world, known for its beautiful architecture, stunning art, and exquisitely designed and curated homes. Furniture, and its rich and tapestried history in London, is an integral part of that story. London, with its rich history of ornately carved wood furniture that graces royal and stately homes, remains a hub for contemporary furniture design.
Nowadays, London remains a hub for contemporary furniture design, blending historical techniques developed by the great craftsmen with innovative modern designs and features. With this rich history, London is obviously at the centre of recent trends in interior and furniture design, which reflect a blend of luxury, sustainability, and aesthetic sophistication. Current trends in interior design call for bespoke furniture—tailor made to work alongside architectural features—and natural and organic materials that work within a minimalist and personalised design scheme. In the list below you will find furniture shops in London that will cater to the cutting edge of interior and furniture design.
Aria, Islington
At Aria, you will find a highly curated selection of both modern and vintage furniture, blending the very best from modern Scandinavian designs and mid-century luxury. They are located in an exquisite Victorian hall, and as you wander around looking at all the beautiful items they have on offer, you will encounter work by established and emerging designers. Aria offers an interior planning service to help you create the perfect space for you and they also have extensive gift buying guides on their website so you can find just the right gift for someone you care about, too.
Retrouvius, Kensal Green
Retrouvius is the place to shop for those who take sustainability seriously at the core of their interior design choices. This store is on trend both in terms of style and in terms of taking care of the planet. Retrouvius sells architectural salvage, and they offer furniture and other art pieces made from reclaimed and repurposed pieces. Many of their pieces are one of a kind and they are all distinctive, meaning that if you buy from here, you are not only eco-conscious, you are also cultivating a totally unique style for your home. Their products feature gorgeous and hard wearing materials, meaning they will last many years into the future.
Chelsea Harbour Design Centre
The Chelsea Harbour Design Centre is, without exaggeration, the hub of luxury interior design in London. In this exceptional space you will find work from the very best designers and high-end products—there are over 120 vendors at the Design Centre, with each one displaying a unique arrangement of lighting, furniture, and textiles, and each with a different design sensibility spanning from across the continent. For those looking for top quality products and expert advice, this is really the place to be. The Design Centre also hosts talks, so if you are wanting to learn more about current trends in interior designs then there is plenty on offer to help you build the interior space of your dreams.
Alfie’s Antique Market
This treasure trove is again the perfect place for those who are eco-conscious. Piled with genuinely beautiful and often rare pieces of antique furniture, this shop sprawls over four floors, so it does require some determination. If you are prepared to search, then there will certainly be something for you in this incredible store. Each piece comes with information on its provenance so you can trace where your furniture has come from, following the path it has taken before it arrived in your home. In keeping with current trends in interior design, this environmentally friendly option is great for those who want to curate a hyper personal and living space with beautiful antique pieces you can be sure no one else has in their home.
Mint, South Kensington
Mint is a store for those who fancy themselves as being at the cutting edge of interior design. In this store, the avant garde reigns supreme. They feature a highly curated array of exciting modern products from international designers. The store has a proven track record, having been opened in 1988 by owner Lina Kanafani. Often, Kanafani will commission designers and artists to produce work that is exclusive to Mint, meaning that anything you buy from Mint will be incredibly unique. Kanafani also keeps sustainability at the heart of her curatorial practice, so you can be certain that when you purchase something it has been made with the planet in mind.
London’s long and impressive history in the furniture world can be traced through its many exciting furniture stores, from the antique stores in the list above that showcase the very best of London’s furniture making history, to the modern galleries that are producing products that will go down in those very same history books. Contemporary interior design is all about personalised, bespoke, and sustainable interiors and you need look no farther than the list to meet all those checkpoints. Whether you are vintage at heart and are looking to shop antique, or after that hyper modern look then London has something for you.
