Chas Tapp,
Southgate Road.
Builders' merchants and DIY supplies, trade and retail, on the corner in De Beauvoir. Open every day of the week, including Sunday mornings.
Six aisles, one till.
What's actually on the shelves and in the window — hardware, paint, plumbing, garden and household goods, priced individually rather than by the multipack.
Hardware & tools
Screws, fixings, hand tools and general ironmongery, sold from the drawer rather than off a card.
Paint & decorating
Berger paint and colour matching, brushes, rollers and trays.
Plumbing & bathroom
Pipe, fittings, washers and the small parts that stop a job at the merchant.
Garden & outdoor
Calor Gas bottle exchange kept on the pavement, plus garden hand tools.
Household
Buckets, bins, mops, brooms and the everyday things a kitchen or yard runs out of.
Fixings & fasteners
Nuts, bolts, nails and washers sold in the quantity you actually need.
One shop, one till, for the builder and the DIY job.
Trade & retail supplier is what's painted in the window, and it means what it says — a site foreman buying by the box and someone in for one washer are served at the same counter.
Berger Paints dealer
Colour-matched paint sold and mixed on site, one coat and standard ranges.
Calor Gas exchange
Propane and butane bottle swap kept out front — no need to book ahead.
What the counter actually gets asked.
Two things regulars have come in for and left with the right answer, not just the nearest product on the shelf.
Everbuild industrial-strength superglue, recommended over the counter for a broken glasses temple — held.
From a customer's own account of a visit to the shopKilrock limescale remover, pointed out for an encrusted kitchen sink tap — worked on the first go.
From a customer's own account of a visit to the shopThe shop, as it actually looks.
Photographed on Southgate Road, N1 — the shop's own pavement display, unchanged for the site.
What Google says.
"Has everything you need, from one screw to a complete house refurbishment."
Google review"Helpful, knowledgeable staff — good at figuring out exactly what you need, not just what's nearest on the shelf."
Google review"A great DIY shop, reminiscent of shops from the past. The owner's a lovely gentleman."
Google reviewCommon questions.
Are you open on Sundays?
Yes — 9am to 2pm, as posted in the shop door. The rest of the week it's 9am to 5:30pm (9 to 5 on Saturdays).
Do you serve trade as well as walk-in customers?
Both, at the same counter — it's what "trade & retail supplier" on the window means. No separate trade-only counter or account needed to buy at trade prices on the day.
Do you do Calor Gas bottle exchange?
Yes, kept out on the pavement — swap an empty for a full one without needing to order ahead.
Is there parking nearby?
Southgate Road is a residential street with pay-and-display bays; the shop is a short walk from Haggerston Overground and Essex Road rail station if you're coming by train.
111 Southgate Road.
| Monday | 9:00 – 17:30 |
| Tuesday | 9:00 – 17:30 |
| Wednesday | 9:00 – 17:30 |
| Thursday | 9:00 – 17:30 |
| Friday | 9:00 – 17:30 |
| Saturday | 9:00 – 17:00 |
| Sunday | 9:00 – 14:00 |