![\"Elie](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2_JS400199297.jpg\")
<\/p>\nTraders at one of London’s oldest markets are again fearing for their future after being told by the landlord that their tenancies will not be renewed<\/p>\n
Elie has been trading inside the shopping village for 25 years. If he is forced to leave, then he believes that will be the end of his business(Image: Facundo Arrizabalaga\/MyLondon)<\/p>\n
An East London market trader fears he will have ‘nowhere to go’ after being told he only has a few weeks to leave the place he has called home for the last 25 years. Ridley Road Shopping Village<\/a>, the indoor shopping market alongside the iconic outdoor one, has been teetering on the edge of closure for the past few years.<\/p>\n In February, the landlords, Larochette,<\/a> informed traders that their tenancies would not be extended and that the market must shut down. Traders inside have spoken about the years of uncertainty surrounding their future in the indoor market since it was purchased in 2016 by offshore company Larochette Real Estate Inc.<\/p>\n Now, this new announcement is leaving them facing the prospect of another battle. For traders such as Elie, this market has been his lifeblood for over 20 years and having to leave it would spell the end of his time running his furniture pitch.<\/p>\n Traders inside Ridley Road Shopping Village are facing the prospect of having ‘nowhere to go’ if their tenancies aren’t renewed (Image: Facundo Arrizabalaga\/MyLondon)<\/p>\n He told MyLondon: “If I close here, that’s it. There’s nowhere else for me to go. I’ve got customers who always come to me; I’ve been here a long time, I know all these people – where could I go?<\/p>\n “I can’t put my pitch outside. I can’t put this stuff there. [We] need a long-term solution. We’ve had these problems before, and they said we could stay 2-3 years, and now, we’re back again [in the same situation].<\/p>\n “They [the council] have offered a space outside, but what’s the plan? I’ve been in Hackney<\/a> for 35 years, and had my pitch for 25. Hopefully, something can change. [The council] needs to help. “<\/p>\n Larochette purchased the property for \u00a36.5 million in 2016 and subsequently submitted plans to Hackney Council<\/a> to convert it into luxury apartments. These plans were subsequently quelled amid a widespread community campaign by Save Ridley Road.<\/p>\n In 2022, following previous eviction threats, Hackney Council agreed in 2022 to assume the lease once renovation work had been completed. However, four years on, the redevelopment remains unfinished, and the landlord continues to control the building.<\/p>\n The iconic market has been a pillar of the community since 1880(Image: Facundo Arrizabalaga\/MyLondon)<\/p>\n Hackney Council do not run the indoor village, so they are limited in what they can do. MyLondon reached out to the council, and Mayor of Hackney, Caroline Woodley, said: \u201cWe are here to support businesses at Ridley Road Shopping Village, whose livelihoods have been put at risk after landlord Larochette, the building\u2019s private landlord, informed them that their leases won\u2019t be extended.<\/p>\n \u201cThis follows the landlord\u2019s failure to deliver a planned refurbishment of the building, which would have allowed the Council to take over and manage it in the interests of the Dalston community.<\/p>\n “Since becoming aware of the latest developments, we have offered businesses in the building discounted pitches at the Council-managed Ridley Road street market, and secured new premises for one business within the shopping village, as well as storage space for another<\/p>\n \u201cI have also requested an urgent meeting with the landlord and the police, and will strongly make the case for additional time and support for businesses affected. Meanwhile, we continue to invest in the future of the Ridley Road street market, which has seen over \u00a31m in improvements and recently expanded to operate seven days a week<\/p>\n Activists argue that the market is a crucial community resource, offering affordable food and products that are challenging to source in supermarkets.<\/p>\n In 2022, the Shopping Village underwent renovation work and was then meant to be leased to Hackney Council. Four years on, the redevelopment remains unfinished, and the landlord continues to control the building.(Image: Facundo Arrizabalaga\/MyLondon)<\/p>\n Another trader who has been trading for ten years said: “I feel like they want to close the whole market. In 2 -3 years’ time, I bet there won’t be any more Ridley Road market. It feels like it’s a matter of time. We can’t do anything. We keep campaigning, and we have to keep doing it again and again. They want us out by the end of the month. There’s nowhere for me to go; they’ve offered no alternatives. If they close this, I’ll have to go get another job.”<\/p>\n Rainbow Properties, which operates alongside Larochette, stated that traders had not been evicted but that their leases were expiring and would not be renewed. They had also claimed that the police had raised concerns about anti-social behaviour and crime in the market, but the Metropolitan Police<\/a> later said they had not recommended the closure of the building and confirmed the decision had been made independently by the owner.<\/p>\n Trader Jay said: “People are trying to provide for their families here. Having to feel constantly unsettled is not fair. When it comes to anti-social behaviour, we can’t stop the public from coming in. It’s a public space [that] people can pass through; it has nothing to do with traders. We all work together here. Without the traders, without the public support, the traders cannot exist.”<\/p>\n MyLondon reached out to Rainbow Properties for a comment.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2_JS400199059.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Ridley](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1_JS400199058.jpg\")
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