The Map Gift shop, located on the corner of Junction Road and St. John’s Grove, is one of the dozen independent businesses to have received a much-needed uplift as part of Islington Council’s £2m high street regeneration programme.

Having worked through the 80s as a textile designer producing hand-printed fabrics for the fashion industry, Ian Morris established Map in 1990 with Kathryn Phalp. Map has developed an international reputation from their studio/ shop on Junction Road, where they have been based since 2003, and is a positive example of how a 'bricks and mortar' high street retailer can compete with retailers based online.

Kathryn and Ian, who have run a successful business for more than 20 years, see Map as more than just a shop, but also as a community hub: “we have people leave keys for their neighbours, post delivered here for people who aren’t in during the day… we are like a centre for information – we hear the local news and pass it on to our customers”.

The project, which included a new shopfront, improved access and interior remodelling, formed part of a wider grant programme by the London Borough of Islington to revitalise and regenerate the high street. Located within the St. John’s Grove conservation area, Lyndon Goode undertook significant research of the historic design of shopfronts to Junction Road, which had been well-documented as part of the Northern Line construction.