Market FORCE

Town's stalls are 'buzzing' while others around the region close

- By DECLAN CAREY

IT'S been the heart of the town for generations.

Stockport Market, based in a Victorian hall with huge glass windows, has everything from fresh meat and fish to clothes, beer and bacon butties.

During the week, pots of tea are drunk as old friends catch up and put the world to rights.

On Fridays and Saturdays, it becomes a buzzing centre where many choose to start the weekend.

In a time when markets in Greater Manchester and across the country have struggled to survive the shift to online shopping, Stockport Market is still going strong.

One of the reasons behind that is the massive regeneration work taking place around the town, which is bringing in more people to live and work there every year.

This includes improvements to Stockport's historic Underbanks, where numerous food and drinks venues are based.

Others point to the market's history, which is said to trace its origins back hundreds of years to the late Anglo-Saxon period.

"It seems to have got busier over the last 18 months, there are a lot of new bars opening, it's pulling people into the town centre", says Dave Walker from Big Fish Little Fish - a fishmonger based at the market.

The 59-year-old has worked in Stockport for five years and has seen all the big changes taking place around the town, which he thinks is bringing more people to the market stalls too.

Dave added: "It's great here, I love it. Trade is very good for us, it's a fantastic place and there are more and more people coming." Footfall at Stockport Market is indeed growing, the council said, and has gone beyond pre-Covid levels. It's been helped by some of the regular events that are held around the market hall, including a monthly street-food festival called Foodie Friday, and Stockport Makers Markets.