The Museum of Brands
111-117 Lancaster Road Notting Hill London W11 1QT
A collection of scraps from the margins of everyday life for the past 200 years, the Museum of Brands is an exercise in nostalgia for those who have pined for these mostly forgotten brands, or an interesting detour for those less used to the strange byways of British consumer culture.The collection started prosiacially enough with a packet of Munchies at Inverness railway station in 1963, and has now grown to encompass more global brands and a far greater span of time, from Victorian times to the present day. It has perhaps lost some of its charm on the way, ending with a corporate display of branding which begins to feel like a marketing campaign – it ends in a triumphant showcase for consumer giants, Kellogs and Diageo, who sponsor the exhibitions here – that said there's enough here to interest anyone interested in the history of packaging, design and marketing, and some lovely little souvenirs in the gift shop too.
