Space For
Businesses To Flourish

At Canada Water we’re building an inclusive local economy.

This is a place where businesses of all sizes have a chance to expand and flourish, providing jobs for people who live in the area.

Whatever stage you’re at in your business journey, Canada Water has a place for you.

Affordable workspace for local entrepreneurs: Thrive

Thrive, a partnership between charity Tree Shepherd and British Land, offers local start-ups and entrepreneurs a place to grow their operations, along with mentoring and advice. Businesses that have benefited from being part of the Thrive community include cocktail mixologists Strongman’s Tipple, financial advisor Philippina Prempeh and natural skincare brand MamaSia.

Thrive members also have the opportunity to put their wares in front of local customers at Thrive’s monthly markets in Surrey Quays Shopping Centre. The markets offer shoppers a range of affordable and unique products from local independent traders, ranging from crystals to fashion accessories, beauty products and arts & crafts.

Incubator space for tech start-ups: Paper Yard

The timber-clad building at Paper Yard houses 33,000 sq ft of fitted and lab-enabled space. The building’s modular design gives science and technology businesses the flexibility they need now and in the future.

Two businesses currently operating out of Paper Yard are Chemastery, whose robotic platform automates chemical processes, and Prosemino, who build, finance and scale climate technology start-ups. As these businesses expand, they’ll likely outgrow the incubator space at Paper Yard but we hope to be able to accommodate them in later phases at Canada Water.

Paper Yard also employed two of the first local people who were supported into long-term employment by Canada Water Connect, our partnership with charity ELBA. Navardo, whose family have lived in the area for more than 20 years, joined as the facility’s property manager, while Angela is visitors’ first port of call as front-of-house.