In 2014, Foyles relocated its flagship store to 107 Charing Cross Road, transforming the former Central Saint Martins building into the largest new bookstore in the UK in recent years. Spanning 37,000 square feet across eight levels, the challenge was to reimagine the store not only as a state-of-the-art retail destination but as a cultural hub at the heart of London’s West End.

Futurecity was commissioned to deliver this vision, developing and programming The Gallery at Foyles – a dedicated cultural space on the fifth floor. Over five years, the gallery became a vibrant platform for contemporary culture, hosting exhibitions, public events and site-specific commissions that enriched the daily life of the store.

The programme featured over 20 exhibitions, with solo and group shows by artists such as Turner Prize nominee Mark Titchner, Jane Ward, Aimée García, and photographer David Levene. Collaborations with leading creatives included Pentagram, The Architects’ Journal and architect and critic Oliver Wainwright, with themes ranging from urbanism and sustainability to typography, memory and visual language.

Free and open to the public, The Gallery at Foyles offered an accessible cultural experience that blurred the boundaries between retail and exhibition space. It was recognised in Design Week, The Guardian and Dezeen as a prototype for how underutilised retail environments can be reimagined through cultural placemaking.

Curated by Futurecity from 2014–2019, the gallery demonstrated the power of embedding creativity into commercial contexts, positioning Foyles as both a leading bookstore and a cultural destination.