The Trove atelier desk is a small upper room on Clapton Square, in east London. We see boutique operators by appointment on Thursdays and Fridays — usually for the conversation that follows a sent application. There is no walk-in; there is, on each day we are open, a kettle, two chairs and an unhurried hour.
The atelier desk shares an upper floor with two other independent operations whose names we will not reveal here, in the spirit of the building. It is not a showroom. It is the room in which the application reading happens, the cohort calls are taken, and the buyers whose shops are in the programme drop in occasionally — most of them three or four times a year, for the kind of conversation that needs a table and a printout.
Visits are by appointment, sent in response to an application or follow-up. We do not host walk-ins; the building is residential above the second floor and we have a sympathetic but observant set of neighbours. If you have applied for an atelier slot and the conversation has progressed to "let's meet," the visit is the natural next step.
An unhurried hour. Tea or coffee, by your request. A printout of your application, with our notes in the margin. A handful of pieces from the catalogue you sent through, laid out so we can talk about them. The conversation is buyer-to-buyer in tone, not vendor-to-client; if the fit is right, the conversation will tell us so, and if it isn't, the same.
Clapton Square is a five-minute walk from Hackney Central railway station and the Hackney Central overground. Clapton itself is on the Lea Valley line. There is no parking on the square; if you are driving, the small public car park on Mare Street is the nearest sensible place to leave a vehicle. If you are arriving from outside London, the building has a discreet front step and a brass plate; we will send you the entry instructions in the appointment confirmation.
Nothing. Bring nothing. If we need a sample, we will ask in advance; if we need a printout, we will print it. The most useful thing you can bring is a willingness to read aloud the paragraph in your application about what you refuse to stock — the answer to that question, voiced rather than typed, is the most reliable indicator of fit we have found.