Four fire engines and around 25 firefighters attended a fire at a beauty salon on Roman Road in Bow.
Part of the ground floor of the premises was damaged by fire. There were no reports of any injuries.
A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: "No working smoke detectors were installed at the property, which was shut at the time of the fire. The alarm was raised when a member of the public noticed smoke coming from the premises and called the Brigade. Firefighters attended and were able to gain access and extinguish the fire and limit its spread to the rest of the property.
“Smoke alarms give the earliest possible warning when a fire starts and we would urge everyone to make sure they have one fitted in every room where a fire can start except kitchens or bathrooms where heat alarms are more appropriate.”
The Brigade received the first of five calls about the fire at 1248 and Control Officers mobilised crews from Bethnal Green, Shadwell, Homerton and Poplar fire stations to the scene. The fire was extinguished by 1350.
The fire is being treated as accidental and believed to have been caused by an electrical fault in the kitchen area.