Nabma News

The Nabma Conference will soon be upon us, so I thought I would give you a taster of what you will be experiencing if you are able to join us in Torquay. There is still time to book and you will be made very welcome.

A crucial part of Nabma’s work in recent years has been connecting markets with local communities and ensuring that markets are linked to a range of mainstream policies. We have done this principally via the publication of our Policy Framework for Markets, which highlighted the importance of markets to new start opportunities, culture, tourism, regeneration, healthy eating and the food agenda and also through our highly successful Love Your Local Market Campaign. At Conference we will be reflecting on the importance of markets to the community and social agenda with Professor Sophie Watson of the Open University, who acted as special advisor to the Government Inquiry into Retail Markets, and also looking at Marlborough Market, which has become a real hub of the local community.

Localism is a key part of the current government’s agenda and providing a community rights challenge in respect of local services is one way in which a local authority markets service could be taken over by local people. In recent months one or two of our members have faced this challenge and we will be exploring at Conference, with the help of Justin Griggs of NALC, the issues relating to community rights challenges.

Of course Nabma Conference would not be complete without an in depth look at Love Your Local Market 2013 and also looking forward to Love Your Local Market 2014. There will be presentations from Warrington and Horsham about their LYLM activities. News about next year will also be given with the Teenage Market playing a central role. There is also a chance to reflect on the highly successful Youth Market at Manchester, supported by NMTF and Manchester Council.

It’s great to see investment in markets and this year we have seen some tremendous schemes to update and revitalise markets. In addition to the presentations at Conference from Sheffield and Bolton, I am delighted to be able to record the investment being made at Leeds, Swansea, Leicester, Chesterfield and other places. All these projects reflecting confidence in the future of markets.

In addition to sampling the market projects at Sheffield and Bolton, there is also an opportunity to hear about one of the world’s most stunning market projects with the new Market Hall at Rotterdam providing a new market, housing and a focal point for the whole of the city. It really is a project to take your breath away and those attending the Nabma Conference will be able to see it at first hand.  Next year Nabma will be hosting the World Union of Wholesale Markets Conference in London and we will be combining that Conference with a UK Markets Conference. This is the first time that Nabma and NMTF will have combined to promote a Conference. To whet our appetite and help in understanding the work undertaken by WUWM there will be a presentation from Jan Lloyd, Chief Executive of New Covent Garden and WUWM board member.

I hope I have already awakened your interest, but this is only the programme for the first day so there are lots more presentations still to come on the second day. We all know the term Business Improvement District, but how do they work and what impact do they have on markets? Well, Cambridge Market is part of a BID and they will be telling us what difference the BID has made to them.

We are now in the second year of Mary Portas and it has not all been plain sailing. Yes there have been successes, but there have also been disappointments and Professor Cathy Parker of the Institute of Place Management will be undertaking an assessment of the good and not so good aspects of the Mary Portas project.

Market Rights continue to be a subject close to the heart of many Nabma members and while there have not been as many recorded court cases in recent years, there are still legal challenges being pursued. Bradford have an interesting story concerning their use of planning powers to stop a rival market in their area.

Recently Nabma launched a UK Markets Index to supplement the existing Town Centre data and I am keen to see this Index prosper. We will be hearing at Conference of the progress we have already made and plans for the future.

In addition, there are other sessions on the quality of retailers in our markets and workshops on social media and getting the best out of markets.

I hope all this has made you realise that you need to be at The Imperial Hotel, Torquay from the 22nd-24th September. In addition to the Conference itself, there some great social events with informal dinner and caribbean steel band on the first night and a formal dinner and awards night on the second. All this plus great networking and a great market place exhibition.

There are still places on either a residential and day basis. The Nabma Conference is open to anyone and, as I said at the outset, you are assured of a warm welcome. Why not give it a try.

Graham Wilson OBE 
Chief Executive,
Nabma

Whats on at Stockport Market

Stockport Market is going all out this May with a staggeringly diverse range of events to tickle the taste buds of nearly everybody! It all kicks off on the 4th of May with the Sausage Festival in the Stockport Victorian Market Hall. Stockport Sausage Festival 2013 will be a celebration of hand-held happiness, combining beers, bangers and bands.
The following weekend, Sunday 12 May sees the ‘Hand in Glove Fair’, marking the 30th anniversary of the release of the first Smiths' single. As a World Exclusive, there will be a display of recently discovered, never-before-seen authentic Smiths documents from 1983 on show at Room at the Top Vintage Goods, a few steps away from the Market Hall.
The 15 – 29 May sees national Love Your Local Market. In Stockport, the celebrations start for real on Friday 17 May. From 4pm you will be able to taste the best of Greater Manchester's gourmet street foods till 9pm, courtesy of Guerrilla Eats. Guerrilla Eats is a collective set up by a group of street food traders in who just love the food they make. You’ll also be able to the best of market shopping till 7ish and High Peak Beer's Pop-Up Bar till 9. This is the perfect opportunity for people who work in the town centre to stay a while and appreciate the hidden gems in Stockport.
Saturday 18 May is Funky Weekend, with a marquee on the Market Mile showcasing the Sunday event market, along with live music from Raised by Radio AND Le Funk, as well as classic 70s and Northern Souls sounds from the DJ. It is also the day of Big Dance, so expect some flash mobs too.
Last but not least, Bank Holiday Weekend (24-26 May) sees a 70s Roller Rink come to Stockport Market, complete with DJ, balloon modellers, free showings of Grease, pop up bingo and even a Carpenters tribute act! More is being added each day, so watch for the posters and flyers around town and put the dates in your calendar – you won’t regret it.



http://www.stockport.gov.uk/services/leisureculture/visitstockport/stockportshopping/stockportmarket/
http://highpeakbeer.webs.com/events.htm
http://www.thevintagevillage.co.uk/events/the-vintage-village-hand-in-glove-fair
http://www.guerrillaeats.co.uk/
http://www.robinsonsvisitorscentre.co.uk/times

Adam Corbally talks Markets.

Whilst at the Airport on a recent trip to Amsterdam, I couldn’t help but get lost in the maze of perfume, pen shops and Pharmacists, not to mention being approached with the golden opportunity of winning a supercar, which is only fit for driving on a grand prix circuit as it is so low to the floor, not to mention the cost of insurance, fuel and, of course, you can’t exactly throw a sack of spuds into the back of Lamboghini!

Whilst trying to find my way out of the shops and make my way to my terminal, it set me to thinking how all of these over priced perfume shops were making it pay?

It seemed that the airport I was in, namely Manchester, had, like every other I have visited in many parts of the world, all had one thing in common, they were BUSY. I mean, these places have every single inch of retail space utilised.

I asked myself the question, what is to be learnt from this experience? Is it to open 10 over priced perfume and pen stalls on markets nationwide? No, certainly not, there is one reason that Airport retail space is, in my opinion, the only retail space in the world that is recession proof, lets face it when was the last time you saw a “closing down sale” or an empty shop in an airport? That reason is FOOTFALL, plain and simple. The retailers are pretty much guaranteed passengers or, more importantly, customers on a daily basis with money to spend and just as important, time on their hands.

OK, so how can we learn from our Airports success and create footfall for our markets and, more importantly, get them to hang around and spend money!?

There are lots of answers out there, although a great one is host an Event! I’m sure by now every market has someone running their social media marketing and advertising campaign, which is a fantastic free way to reach a direct target market and let them know what you have planned. In the early stages of planning an event you can even ask for ideas from your friends/followers on what THEY would like to see on their local market?

Once you have pulled together a few positive like minded people from your market to organise and host an event, it is surprising how this sort of thing can gain momentum and support very quickly. When your market managers see you making the effort they will be more willing to provide support and I dare say you might even be able to squeeze a few quid out of them too.

As I have said before, it is the longevity and viability of markets which is key, so please do make sure that any event compliments the existing traders and more importantly falls on a usual trading day, as the idea is the extra footfall of customers on the day see the market in all its glory and make a return trip the week after, attracts some new regulars and maybe even inspires some new traders!

Ideas for events can be anything to attract footfall, hold a crowd and you needn’t worry about a budget too much as there are lots of people you could attract to perform and use the event as free publicity for themselves and a chance to showcase their product/service. A couple of ideas are - get in touch with your local dance troop and ask them to do 3 performances on the day for nothing in return, to be included in all of the publicity before the event and the chance to sell themselves on the day. Ask your local bouncy castle/face painter/ kids face painter along on the same deal and why not even ask your local beauty college shop to attend and all have fun having taster sessions of treatments? Im sure you may even be able to entice the fire brigade down, use the Fire Brigade as a massive attraction for the kids and in return they get to promote fire safety and prevention. You could involve Schools, Youth Clubs, Martial arts Do Jos, Army cadets and Scouts on the day.

After all the list of opportunities for an event is endless, especially if you have empty stalls. There are so many ways to FILL them!

I can pretty much guarantee that your local newspaper/ radio station would love to promote the event for free if you make sure the most enthusiastic member of your team gets in touch with them with the agenda and as we know, a story gets more attention than an advert and costs nothing!  

I rarely use or like clichés, but it is true to say “If you build it they will come” so start building and please do get in touch via my website as I am keen to hear news of everyone’s ideas and events.

Adamcorbally.co.uk

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