Get Living has today revealed the first confirmed retail brands at The Elephant, its £500 million new town centre at Elephant & Castle, marking a significant milestone in the delivery of one of Central London’s most ambitious mixed-use destinations.
Launching in late 2026, The Elephant will be among the largest new retail-led town centre openings in Zone 1 in recent years. The opening wave has been carefully curated to combine best-in-class national brands with distinctive independents such as local Latin food market DistriAndina and health-focused café Jungle Berry, establishing a high-quality, experience-led destination for the area.
M&S will open a brand-new fresh market-style food store at the location, offering fresh produce, everyday essentials and a wide range of on the go breakfast, lunch and dinner choices. A dedicated Click & Collect point will also allow customers to easily collect their fashion, home & beauty online orders.
Brooklyn-born cult brand Blank Street Coffee will open in summer 2026 ahead of the main launch, bringing its signature menu – including the viral blueberry matcha latte – to The Elephant.
Health-focused café Jungle Berry will offer a sustainable, wellness-led menu centred on premium açaí and other nutritious treats.
Alongside a new cinema screening mainstream, independent and classic films, Latin food market DistriAndina, currently trading locally from the arches, will relocate to The Elephant, providing fresh produce, specialist ingredients and traditional foods from across Latin America to serve the area’s diverse community.
Designed by renowned British architecture firm Allies and Morrison, The Elephant represents a major revival of one of the capital’s most storied areas. Named after a coaching inn recorded in 1765, the area known as the “Piccadilly Circus of south London” by the early 20th century was once a bustling commercial hub centred around the William Tarn and Co department store.
It became home to Europe’s first covered shopping centre in 1965, famously painted pink before its demolition in 2021. The area boasts a rich cultural legacy: notable residents have included Charlie Chaplin and Michael Caine and the area has been referenced by Virginia Woolf, in the video for Dexys Midnight Runners’ Come on Eileen, and even by Shakespeare in Twelfth Night: “In the south suburbs, at the Elephant, is best to lodge.”
Set against the backdrop of the wider £4 billion Elephant & Castle transformation, The Elephant will deliver 485 new rental homes, including 172 affordable homes, alongside 135,000 sq ft of shops, dining, wellness and leisure uses, with 55,000 sq ft of workspace and a range of retail units offered to local traders at discount market rent.
The Elephant is forecast to rank within the top 4% of all capital retail destinations, with retail property consultants CACI projecting an annual spend of over £200 million, placing it ahead of established hubs like Camden Town, The Strand and Brixton. The site is one of the best-connected in London, with 16 million annual footfall expected. It’s served by 28 bus routes, rail, and tube infrastructure enabled for the future Bakerloo Line extension.
Aidan Malia, Senior Director, The Elephant, said: “The Elephant’s debut line-up of retailers marks a major milestone for Elephant & Castle. It is a huge boost for the local community and a definitive vote of confidence in south London’s retail & leisure future and our vision for The Elephant. As we set a new benchmark for town centre regeneration, our ambition is to shape a destination where global brands sit alongside evolving and independent retailers, offering something for everyone, serving Elephant & Castle’s beautifully multicultural local community while presenting an experimental mix that drives new visitors to the area. We’re proud of the progress we’ve made so far and there is much more to come, so watch this space.”
Will Smith, Property Director at M&S, said: “Our new store will bring the best of M&S Food to residents and commuters in Elephant & Castle. We have an exciting pipeline of new stores across the capital and we’re looking for sites where we can deliver the best products and the best possible shopping experience for our customers – we have the opportunity to do just that at The Elephant. Work will start in the coming months and we will keep the community updated on opening date.”
In 2027, a new University of the Arts London (UAL) campus for the London College of Communication (LCC) will open for 5,500 students and staff. The college, which trained advertising guru Charles Saatchi and Neville Brody, will house the UAL Archives and Special Collections Centre. Spanning the history of the creative arts and including the archives of Stanley Kubrick, the facility will open these cultural collections to the public. Following this phase, plans have been approved for a further 507 homes, including 49 new affordable rent and 116 social rent homes, alongside affordable retail and workspace.
Future plans also include a 27,800+ sq ft cultural venue created by repurposing part of the existing LCC building. At a time of frequent venue closures, this flexible space will protect London’s night-time economy and nurture the next generation of creative talent.
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Notes to editors
Further information for Get Living or The Elephant contact: [email protected]
To stay updated on The Elephant’s plans, you can sign up on its website or follow The Elephant on Instagram.
About The Elephant
Get Living’s Elephant & Castle Town Centre scheme, now named The Elephant, will be a major new destination in the heart of the Capital. Set against the backdrop of the £4bn Elephant & Castle Opportunity Area, the scheme will deliver 485 new homes for market and affordable rent, alongside a new retail destination including 135,000 sq ft of shops, dining and leisure uses, 55,000 sq ft of workspace and a state-of-the-art new building for UAL’s London College of Communication. The public realm will be completely transformed with new streets, a public square and extensive landscaping for the whole community. Get Living already operates 652 homes in Elephant & Castle and a further phase of development is planned on the current site of the London College of Communication which will deliver a further 507 rental homes and 452 student homes.
About Get Living
Get Living is one of the UK’s leading build-to-rent investors, developers and operators. We deliver high-quality rental homes in thoughtfully designed neighbourhoods that foster connection, a sense of belonging, and opportunity – creating long-term value for both residents and shareholders.
Founded in 2013 with the UK’s first large-scale build-to-rent neighbourhood at East Village, Stratford, Get Living today has grown to more than 6,200 homes across seven neighbourhoods in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Maidenhead and Leatherhead.
Looking ahead, our future development pipeline will deliver a further 1,800 homes.
