South London is about to get a brand new shopping and dining district. Meet Borough Yards, the new kid on the retail block and an exciting addition to the bustling London Bridge and Southbank scene, which launched its first phase in early January 2022.

The project, set on a site previously semi-concealed underneath rail arches and composed largely of neglected industrial buildings, is adjacent to the historic Borough Market. Its architects, SPPARC, spearheaded a weaving of old and new, mixing freshly designed buildings and familiar materials, typologies and shapes, to create a complex that they, and the developers behind it, MARK, hope will attract and delight. The aim was to create a diverse, 21st century-worthy, but still respectful, scheme that nods to the past while looking towards the future.

The gleaming, brick-built affair has room for 50 new shops and restaurants plus 17,000 sq m of fresh office space – all of it a sourdough roll’s throw from the popular Victorian market hall and neat independent shops that line it. This opening was preceded by the scrubbed-up Soap Yard space, which welcomed visitors in December. The rest of the development, by London-based architects Spparc, will open fully in spring and include an array of top restaurants such as Barrafina and Vinoteca.

Source: Boroughyards.com and Wallpaper.com / Cover image: Borough Yards. Other Images: Ed Reed