Fresh off the press... and out of the oven
Meet the man behind the coolest new store on the block serving vintage comics and freshly baked treats
Chelsea Manor Street has a new kind of hero, and he arrives carrying a stack of vintage comics in one hand and a tray of still-warm cookies in the other.
Comics & Cakes is exactly what it sounds like and somehow much more besides. Part comic book store, part bakery, part pop‑culture playground, it is the sort of place you wander into “just for a look” and leave clutching a rare issue, a superhero‑themed cookie, and a newly rekindled sense of joy.
Behind the counter is Andre, co‑founder and chief curator, who landed in Chelsea after an earlier life in Camden Market. The idea itself began as a joke. Andre was selling comics. His girlfriend was running a bakery. Someone, somewhere, said “what if…” and instead of laughing it off, they leaned all the way in.
“It just made sense,” Andre says. “There aren’t many comic shops left in London, especially for single‑issue vintage comics. If you want them, you usually end up online. We wanted to create a place where people could really browse, discover and fall in love with them again.”
Chelsea, it turns out, was the perfect plot twist. With New Forms alive with vinyl and listening sessions next door, and live music down the road at The Trafalgar, Comics & Cakes feels right at home in the neighbourhood’s growing creative energy. Andre is already dreaming up collaborations, from film nights and music evenings to Q&As with comic writers and artists. Watch this space, indeed.
Inside, the space is bright, colourful and deliberately tactile. Think of it less as a traditional comic shop and more like a great record store. Come in, flick through, follow your instincts. You might find a comic published on your exact birthday, thanks to Andre’s brilliantly geeky birthday‑matching service. Or you might take home a photo print or collage of comic art, perfect for those who love the visuals as much as the storylines.
And then there are the cakes. Baked in‑house, often superhero‑themed, and proudly vegan and gluten‑free without advertising the fact too loudly. “You’d never know,” Andre promises, before pointing out another nice touch: old or damaged comics reborn as chocolate bar wrappers.
Comics & Cakes is not just about collectors or connoisseurs. It is about curiosity, colour, culture and cake. A place where pop culture meets pastry, and where Chelsea quietly adds another brilliant, unexpected chapter to its story.
Comics & Cakes - Find out more [link to relevant store page in the directory]
