The Black Cats outside the Black Cat Factory

Image: © Marathon Taken: 3 Oct 2021

The former Carreras Cigarette Factory in Mornington Crescent near Camden Town is sometimes called simply the ‘Black Cat Factory’. The Carreras Tobacco Company began in 19th century London. Don José Joaquin Carreras Ferrer had a shop at 61 Prince’s Street near Leicester Square. He had a black cat which, on sunny days, sat in the window of his shop. Londoners wishing to buy tobacco used to ask cab drivers to take them to the tobacconist's shop in Wardour Street with the black cat in the window, because the name Carreras was difficult to pronounce. Thus the Black Cat name became famous. In 1886 it was used as a trademark by Carrera. In 1928, having outgrown previous sites, the Arcadia Works opened in Mornington Crescent. The extraordinary design was fuelled by the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922.The discovery prompted a wave of Egypt-mania in fashion, architecture and design. The combination of the Egyptian theme and the Black Cat, led to the Egyptian Cat Goddess, Bast, and helped decide the system of decoration. Local people still call the building the Black Cat Factory.

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