Blending South Asian and Western styles in one of the most progressive areas of east London, Green Street is a long avenue crammed with shoppers milling in and out of fashionable sari boutiques, Asian restaurants and several dozen jewellers, offering a truly unique shopping experience.
Over the past 20 years Green Street has changed dramatically, expanding as new jewellers have arrived and offering a broader range of designs, from fabulous diamond wedding sets to economically-priced costume jewellery for everyday wear.
The sights, sounds and smells of Green Street are a reminder of everyday life in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and the area is home to immigrants from all over the world, including Eastern Europe and the Caribbean. But it is best known for its cosmopolitan jewellers.
Around two dozen jewellery shops cluster along Green Street, each offering something different, with a wide variety of styles in traditional 22ct gold for South Asian weddings as well as diamond jewellery, gemstones, and contemporary designs to suit all tastes.
Most of Green Street’s customers have South Asian roots. However, their tastes are changing and many now seek sophisticated Western styles, increasingly in white gold and platinum, with diamond jewellery more and more popular for weddings.
A principal supporter of London Jewellery Week and the trade association for retailers in this up-and-coming jewellery district, the Green Street Jewellers’ Association (GSJA) is launching its own consumer magazine Discover Jewellery during London Jewellery Week. Several of Green Street’s jewellers tell their own stories in the first edition of this brand new publication but to get a flavour of the real East be sure to head straight for Green Street itself.
To find out how to receive your copy of Discover Jewellery magazine and to meet some of the leading lights from this jewellery quarter in the heart of Newham, contact ljw@gsja.co.uk.