Perception of street vendors and their effect on urban settings in Portobello Road, London

Purpose Street vendors create a vital urban street and a significant and important part of our urban areas are streets, they cater to our leisure, social and functional needs. There are many debates concerning street vendors; on one hand, there are those who argue against them because they believe they create problems and should be abolished, and on the other hand, there are arguments that defend them and believe that they are vital to the street life. Design/methodology/approach This paper aims to identify people's perception and acceptance of street vending and its effect on experience of the street. Observations and user interviews were undertaken in Portobello and Golborne Road to explore the influence of street vendors on urban settings and analyze their vending patterns and their relationship with urban users. Findings Findings state that street vending takes up a large part in the liveliness and attractiveness of the market in London. People tend to accept street vendors because they have many benefits for vitality and liveliness of the urban environment; however, they sometimes cause problems with ease of mobility in the area for pedestrians and the public in general. Originality/value Street vendors create a vital urban street and provide affordable goods. There are many debates concerning street vendors; on the one hand, there are those who argue against them because they believe they create problems and should be abolished, and on the other hand, there are arguments that defend them and believe that they are vital to the street life. It was important to study street vending in detail in order to explore this unique and important activity that takes place in almost all cities of the world. The case study chosen was quite unique and street vending taking place in Portobello Road and London in general is mostly formal street vending, which wasn't studied in detail previously.