Brixton Rooftop Will Close Following Controversial Sports Retailer’s Acquisition of the Building

The Brixton Rooftop site in the area’s market space will cease to trade due to the recent and ongoing acquisition of a large part of the estate by sports retail behemoth Sports Direct. The Rooftop appears to be the first independent trader to have formally announced its closure as a result of the £30 million deal, which was first reported in late November.

The Popes Road buildings, adjacent to Brixton Market, that house the venue have been acquired two years into the Rooftop’s five year lease, with immediate renovation work forcing trading to cease. A statement on behalf of the operators said that “they hope to return” but confirmed that the ending will be preceded by a blow-out party, taking place from 25 — 27 January.

Sports Direct, a company mired in controversy over accusations of worker mistreatment, has proposed a new location for their discount sportswear. It means that the space, which featured a number of street food traders in a kind of collective, multi-use eating, drinking, pop-up party space will seek a new home at the end of the month.

Some of the names to feature in the space have included: Mac To The Future, The Lambassadors, Vudu Food, StakeHaus, Nanban and Del74. The popular Brixton attraction says it has served over 250,000 pints of beer, 15,000 bottles of prosecco and nearly 10 tonnes of cheese in the years it has been operating. In the summer periods, 159,000 guests are said to have attended.

It will officially close on Saturday 27 January.