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During a time when outdoor markets in town centres are seeing a steep decline, one newly created market is thriving.
Mossley has recently welcomed a farmers market, which operates on the last Sunday of every month. It is going from strength to strength, with more and more market traders coming in at each event.
At the latest instalment of the farmers market in Mossley, hundreds flocked to the stalls to sample the combination of artisan and fresh produce in a family-friendly marketplace.
Mossley Farmers Market
Even Laurel and Hardy were there with Coun Taf Sharif
A plethora of fresh pies, artisan bread, fresh eggs, specialist sauce, baked goods and locally grown plants were all on offer to punters as well as a Laurel and Hardy tribute act. Entertainment for children, interactive characters and other local talent have all been on display at the market.
A special Christmas celebration edition of the market has even been touted by the council.
The market day on 28th September was the third of its kind since its launch in July, and there are more planned for the future to be bigger and better.
Coun Taf Sharif, deputy leader of the council and ward representative for Mossley said: “The Mossley Farmers Market is more than just a place to shop: it’s a celebration of community, culture, and local pride.
Some of the goods for sale at Mossley Market
“From handmade crafts to traditional foods and mascots, events like this showcase the rich diversity and creativity of our town. It brings people together, supports small businesses, and strengthens the bonds that make Mossley such a unique and vibrant place.
“I’m proud to stand with residents, traders, and colleagues in delivering real change for Mossley.”
“events like this showcase the rich diversity and creativity of our town”
This is in stark contrast to what many expect from a town centre market nowadays – a number of empty stalls in what used to be a buzzing hub of activity.
Before supermarkets became the norm, folk would head to their town centres on market day to pick up local produce and any other bits and bobs they needed for the week.
Now food giants such as Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons rule the roost when it comes to most people’s ‘big shop’.
How changing shopping habits are affecting the high street
Centre of Top Mossley, Tameside
A surge in online shopping and the convenience of deliveries for products in the last two decades has further put the future of markets in doubt. The choice for the traditional market is adapt or die.
The latter is the reality for many across the country, not just in Greater Manchester. In recent years, Local Democracy Reporting Service reporters visited a number of market towns across the city-region.
This resulted in the expected response from locals about their town market – ‘the market isn’t what it used to be’ or ‘you should have seen it in its prime’.
What’s happening at Hyde Market?
Hyde Market
If you travel to the south of Tameside to Hyde, there will be a few people who would say the market trade isn’t such a rosy picture. The town has just seen their outdoor market bulldozed and replaced with umbrellas.
The traders there feel the council is trying to push them out of the place where they have been flogging their wares for decades. Although the indoor market is still going inside Clarendon Square Shopping Centre, the future for stallholders outside looks bleak.
The idea behind the parasols is to open up the area and create a more flexible space for community events. The £737,000 project is one part of a wider masterplan to regenerate the shopping centre, town hall and public realm in the town centre.
When I Love Manchester spoke to market traders last year, stallholders wanted more people coming to support their trade. Back then, many felt the £1.2m spent 13 years ago was wasted and delivered no real benefit to the town centre.
Speaking about the market in Hyde back in Spring, Tameside council insisted the recent changes to Hyde’s civic square can be ‘just the start’ of the town’s transformation.
Although these changes aren’t popular with everyone locally, the local authority wants the overhaul of Market Place to take centre stage in their masterplan for Hyde, which captures how the town could be redeveloped over the next two decades.
A repurposed town hall, the overhaul of Clarendon Shopping Centre, the creation of a more attractive public realm and a redesign of the markets are all touted in the plan. The shopping centre itself would be the most significant change proposed on the plan with a key aim being to demolish it.
Greater Manchester regeneration success stories
Altrincham Market credit Wesley Harding Photography
Although pessimistic talk of markets has never been far from the ears, there are great examples of successful regeneration of them that have reinvigorated towns. So there is no reason this latest farmers’ market venture in Mossley couldn’t follow suit.
Altrincham has garnered critical acclaim for its booming nightlife. But if you turn back time to 15 years ago, no one would’ve said that.
The secret of its success is widely thought to be Altrincham Market, more commonly known as ‘Alty Market’. It’s a hub for street food and drink operators where people love to congregate at communal tables and chat to strangers.
You can see what’s happening at Alty Market on their Instagram here
With hospitality businesses coming back to the historic market hall, it became the guiding beacon for retailers flocking back to Altrincham. For so long the town was seen as failing in the face of competition from the Trafford Centre, then the market hall regeneration became the catalyst for its rebirth.
Today, national chains sit alongside thriving independents in a further boost to the leafy suburb. Last year, Altrincham made the top 50 ‘most desirable’ places in Britain by The Telegraph, which ranks towns using census data like the proportion of residents holding managerial jobs, the state of their health and costs of buying a house.
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