The Most Successful Business Industries In London
London is the central hub for so many different industries – and some businesses thrive more than others. In fact, many companies are headquartered in London, such as the BBC, or hold industry-leading events there, like ICE London. Let’s take a closer look at some of the biggest sectors in the capital and how they have continued to grow.
- London’s financial sector
London is perhaps best known for being the heart of the finance industry. This isn’t only true for the UK – London is a world leader in finance. The City of London (often simply called the City) itself is a historic ceremonial county which has been a centre of finance and business with roots as far back as the 17th century. By the 19th century, the British pound sterling financed over half of the trade across the world.
The City – which begins at Temple and reaches the Tower of London – is now the headquarters of huge financial institutions such as the Bank of England, HSBC, and Barclays. Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan and Deutsche Bank, also have a huge presence in the City, among many others. The financial sector has a strong presence in Canary Wharf, being part of London’s Central Business District (CBD), which plays host to a range of companies and encourages a strong business community with dedicated apartment buildings, restaurants, and shopping spaces.
- Media & creative industries
Media and the creative industries have had a strong presence in London for a long time, making it one of the capital’s most competitive sectors. Often viewed by the wider UK as the centre of creativity, London is home to the West End, with its wide range of theatres. When it comes to film, Soho is a central point in the post-production area. Not only that, but huge media institutions such as the BBC, ITV, and Reuters, are based across the city.
National newspapers like The Guardian and The Times are also based in London. Print media has strong and historic ties with the city, as Fleet Street was the main home of printing and publishing since the first printing press was established there in 1500. Even as printing and publishing moved away from Fleet Street and many magazines and newspapers have moved online, London is still home to major leaders in print and visual media.
- London’s gaming industry
Gaming is another industry that also thrives in London, with casinos doing especially well thanks to strong tourism and a reputation for excellent nightlife. Though legislation around gambling and casinos has changed many times, London is still a huge centre for this industry. London hosts many exhibitions and events each year, with ICE London being a big gaming industry show to attend. ICE London is a yearly three-day exhibition which unites gaming industry professionals and exhibitors from all across the world – cementing the city’s reputation as a gaming hub. Plenty of companies in blockchain, esports, iGaming, and more, are on the list of exhibitors each year. The city is also home to a variety of brick and mortar casinos, where players can get involved in a range of table games that are also popular with online casinos like poker, blackjack and roulette. There are also many popular casino websites that also offer players in the UK slot games as well as table games, like 21.co.uk slots.
- The retail industry
London has been known for retail arguably since it became a trading powerhouse in the 19th century. Heading to the city for fabric, food and other items, has morphed into the modern high street, and major players such as Harrods attract a host of tourists and local shoppers. The UK’s fashion industry is focused primarily on London, with companies such as ASOS, French Connection, and Burberry being headquartered in the capital city.
Oxford Street is world-famous for its shopping and plays host to a wide range of large stores, such as Selfridges, which opened in 1909. Liberty London, on nearby Regent Street, is also one of the oldest luxury stores in the UK, being a popular retail spot since 1875. For those looking for luxury items, Bond Street is also another popular shopping location in the city for shoppers with expensive taste.
- Tourism in London
It isn’t surprising that one of the leading sectors in London is tourism as it is one of the most visited cities in the world with many different tourist attractions. Some of the most visited places in the city include Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and the Tower of London. According to data from Statista, the number of overseas tourist visits to London was at a high of 21.71 million people in 2019. Numbers were at a steady rate of over 20 billion each year since 2016, but declined dramatically in 2021 to 2.72 million due to limited global travel at the time. Since then, numbers have started to climb again with a range of industries attracting visitors back to the city.
Much of the tourism in London is based around the city’s rich history, though this has not always been the case. London became more of a tourist attraction in and of itself in the later part of the 19th century when events such as the 1851 Great Exhibition encouraged visitors to travel to London and take advantage of the city’s hotels.
