Mercado Acre, shop small to keep dreams big

An Aladdin’s cave of goodies that will perk up any Madrileño during lockdown

If you’re like me, one of the things you’re likely to love about Madrid is the lack of chains. Don’t get me wrong, they’re creeping in. Brands such as ‘Five Guys’ appearing on Plaza Santa Ana do prompt an eye roll, but in comparison to countries such as the UK and the US, Madrid exists comparatively chain free.

As we’re in full-on lockdown, I’m missing one of my favourite pastimes, which is to simply stroll around various barrios to see what small business gems I can find. I always buy my weekly flowers at Botanyco without fail. I buy my bread at the local bakery, and it’s a given that all fruit and veg is purchased from the grocers next door to my flat. So I was pretty thrilled when I discovered via the ‘gram that Mercado Acre was still open and offering free home deliveries.

Mercado Acre is an Aladdin’s cave of goodies that will perk up any Madrileño during lockdown. It’s an organic store selling homemade bread, nuts, fruit, every type of grain/flour/rice/pastas that you can imagine, and frankly, whilst in the midst of a global pandemic, I don’t think there’s ever been a better time to invest your money in eating well and eating healthily.

But what really made my Sunday (when in all honesty I was struggling after our lockdown being extended) was that they sell plants. With a new green friend purchased and now fully ensconced in my piso, it felt great to bring something living into the flat and being able to support a small, local business.

Madrid lockdown diaries and where to order from local shops that deliver

If you don’t live nearby and can’t walk there yourself, the beauty is that you can order online. The store itself is gorgeous, but you can console yourself by making your home more lovely (it can’t just be me that’s in nesting overload). They stock vases, plant pots and dried flowers, so if you’ve Marie Kondo’d your place, I’m sure you can find something online that would definitely help to spark joy.

There’s a well-known British supermarket whose slogan is ‘every little helps’ – and in this instance it’s true. Support small business if and when you can and before long, hopefully we’ll all be back out discovering them for ourselves, en route to the nearest sun-drenched plaza.

Article by Cat Powell, aka @littlemissmadrid / Feature image by @the_interiorshopkeepers

Mercado Acre

Read Cat’s previous articles:

Check out all Madrid lockdown stories

If you’d like to get involved and share a compelling story from this ongoing chapter of history, reach out to Daphne Binioris (daphne@veracontent.com ) and Daniel Catalan (a96039@aup.edu)