Earlier this week on a small backstreet behind east London’s Haggerston Overground station, a new design gallery, Unit.d, opened its doors to the public for the first time. It's debut showcase, titled 'Wood Metal Plastic', featured works by esteemed local designers Jasper Morrison and Michael Marriott. Its point of difference? The products on show are not limited-edition pieces with price tags stretching into the tens of thousands, but humble, everyday objects produced by local designers, all available to buy and take home immediately for less than £30.
Located in a garage-sized space in Haggerston, the gallery focuses on batch-produced objects by UK designers with the aim of making well-designed everyday products more accessible
‘No one under 35 can afford most of the design in shops,’ states Unit.d’s founder, design writer and strategist Duncan Riches, matter-of-factly. ‘People don’t go to a gallery on opening night expecting to buy something by a designer like Jasper Morrison unless they’re a collector.' Here, the idea is to present and sell work that is accessible, useful and well made.
Housed in a white-painted, garage-sized space with a roller-shutter frontage at the base of an old factory building, Unit.d will open for one week each month with a new exhibition of work by London- and UK-based designers producing objects in small- to medium-sized batches or larger production runs. The focus will be on items designed to function as part of daily life. ‘We could have called it a design store, but it’s housed in a gallery space – we’re trying to elevate everyday objects,’ he explains.
Michael Marriott’s stainless-steel 'Monza' shelf bracket allows any flat board or surface to be turned into a wall-mounted shelf
Having worked in the design sector for over 25 years, most recently as director of the Shoreditch Design Triangle (a position he still holds), Riches has observed a growing lack of spaces for independent designers and makers to showcase batch-produced work. It’s a role once fulfilled by local design and lifestyle shops, but many of these retail environments have disappeared under the pressures of the pandemic and rising rents. Others, meanwhile, now focus on accessories produced by established brands rather than independent makers.
By working with designers to keep prices and material footprints down and production volumes high, Riches hopes good design can reach a wider audience – and in the process spark a broader conversation with consumers about the cost of making. ‘We need greater transparency about the provenance of objects – where they’re made, how they’re made and how much they cost to produce.’
Jasper Morrison’s 'Obi' keyring, originally designed in 1992, is available in brass or stainless steel
The response from the local design community, he says, has been overwhelmingly positive, proving that there is space for a design gallery that sits at the opposite end of the spectrum to collectible design. At Unit.d, design enthusiasts can pick up ‘Monza’, a stainless-steel shelf bracket by Michael Marriott that turns any flat surface into a shelf, for £12.50, or his solid brass wall-mounted bottle opener, ‘Homer’, for £30. Meanwhile Jasper Morrison has contributed ‘Obi’, a keyring made in brass or stainless steel originally designed in 1992, priced at just £20.
A six-month programme of exhibitions is already mapped out, featuring new work from other London-based designers including Travel Things Museum (opening 8 April), Andu Masebo (opening 6 May), Mentsen (opening 3 June), Alexandra Gerber (opening 1 July) and Studio Mama (opening 29 July).
Michael Marriott’s solid brass bottle opener 'Homer' is designed to be wall mounted for everyday use
For Riches, the gallery is not only about making design more accessible; it also provides a space for the local design community to come together. Each exhibition will launch with an event on a Wednesday evening, before the gallery opens daily for the following four days. ‘There are so many wonderful people in the design industry, particularly in and around east London, that there seems to be a pressing need for a space to gather – somewhere to celebrate work, celebrate each other and share ideas.’
Products will be available to purchase directly from the gallery and through an online store, which Riches hopes will gradually build up a permanent collection by selecting standout pieces from each show to continue selling online. He is candid about the experimental nature of Unit.d’s set-up. ‘Will it work? I have no idea. But we’re going to have a go – and we’ve got nothing to lose by trying.’
'Wood Metal Plastic' is open at Unit.d until Sunday 15 March 2026 at 4 Frederick Terrace, E8 4EW
unitd.co.uk