Ranch & the city, June 2025

Hot, sweet & sleep-depriving - this is how I'd sum up the month of trading at Portobello Market in one line, as we've decided to get out of our online comfort zone & hit the city with our wares.

We've been talking about it for months, but having full-time jobs and other commitments (me- dog, Joao - boys), the timing was never right. Until it was. One thing about us is that if we do something, we do it 110%, whether with broken fingers, 3h of sleep or for crossing half of the country just to make £50.

''All I do is drive'' by Johnny Cash became my personal anthem in June, as every weekend I hit the road and drove from Nottinghamshire (where I live) to London. 3h one way, quick pit stop to recharge the battery and stretch the legs, off to Joao's in East London, where I dump the entire stock, we catch up, do some last-minute errands, and it's suddenly midnight.

Market days start early; my alarm yells at 4:20 am, and by 5 we're out & about, reaching Notting Hill just a few minutes past 6 (because of the 20-mile limit everywhere in the city). Once there, we wait for a stall to be allocated (usually around 7), look for coffee & wander around the sleepy neighbourhood. By 8, we're done and ready, and our stall resembles the barn, except it's packed full of gems (we have a mix of listed & unlisted stock).

Well, the above is the perfect scenario, and so far, we've managed to stick to the plan only half of the time. The other half, usually on Saturdays (as it's our second in row market day), we hit the snooze button JUST FOR 5 MORE MINUTES, only to wake up knowing that we fucked up big time. It's 6:10, the car's unloaded and on a parking lot 20 min walk away, and we're in pjs. But I said what I said, we always give 110%. On a day like this, we jump on Joao's bike, go fetch the car, load it in the speed of light and while still respecting the road limits (not that we are such good citizens, the city's packed with cameras!), we manage to arrive in full glory (though with unbrushed teeth) on Portobello by 7. Just in time to get a good spot.

And Portobello Market toilets are great if you need to do your morning routine, I genuinely give them 5 stars.

But enough of our yapping about how hard it is to do cool things for a living (partially). Truth is, we're having a blast on the market, chatting with other traders, exchanging stock & knowledge, meeting some of the coolest folks, friends and you, our customers. I promise we're really humble on the inside, so if you tell us you came to see us in person after following us online for x time, expect a big hug! And be assured that it truly makes our day & beyond.

June's gone in a whiz, and I have nothing else to report as that's what we've been up to throughout the entire month. We've launched a quality denim collection that you can browse here, and secured some stock across the pond, but as we'll be continuing with Portobello for a couple more weeks (with a break for well-deserved summertime), you can expect our next online drop sometime in August. The store's packed full (just like my Volkswagen on Fridays) and we're shipping regularly.

Thanks for being here, for supporting us & let me leave you with a motivational quote I spotted on a cute t-shirt at the market:

Happy July, Marina x