Latin Americans in London: Claims over the identity of place as destination

This chapter focuses on the presence of Latin American businesses in Elephant & Castle (E&C) a deprived area of London that is undergoing an ambitious programmes of urban redevelopment. Latin American retailers started setting up businesses in the E&C at the beginning of the 1990s and over 20 years have transformed the area and in the process contributed to a distinctive ‘Latin Quarter'. This presence however is now under threat. The redevelopment plans for E&C has been received with scepticism by Latin American retailers who despite welcoming some of these changes, fear for their sustainability and future presence in the area. The chapter documents these changes by relying on visual records and documentary evidence based on ethnographic research and in-depth interviews conducted at various times throughout the last twenty years.