Wick's saturday markets

**TJ77** · 04-Sep-12, 12:29

Can any one tell me who i need to get in touch with about getting a stall in the saturday markets in wick?
Cheers,
Ryan S.

**Eilanboy** · 04-Sep-12, 15:30

Originally Posted by TJ77

Can any one tell me who i need to get in touch with about getting a stall in the saturday markets in wick?
Cheers,
Ryan S.

Mrs Armitage 01847 821417

**JimH** · 05-Sep-12, 21:36

Beware - If you have anything to sell that the other stalls sell, then you will not be allowed to set up. We did try.

**smithp** · 05-Sep-12, 21:47

Had the same experience. I don't see the logic to this.

**nightspirit** · 10-Sep-12, 19:59

Is probably why the market is slowly dieing a death - shame really.

**Eilanboy** · 11-Sep-12, 10:14

Didn't appear to be dieing a death last Saturday!!!!!!!!

**nightspirit** · 15-Sep-12, 16:51

How many stalls were there ?

**secrets in symmetry** · 15-Sep-12, 16:58

How long has the Wick Saturday market been running?

**pig whisperer** · 15-Sep-12, 19:13

we tried to book a pitch as a casual [just for the one saterday] but was told we couldnt come on [just the once] because someone else was doing the same as us, this smacks of protectionism, & hardly encourages a healthy & thriving market

**gerry4** · 15-Sep-12, 20:34

Today there were 3. Sometime there are as many as 4. I have given up going there. More need to be added to make it more attractive. A veg stall would be good.

**Shaggy** · 15-Sep-12, 20:53

i don't see how 3 or 4 stalls could be called a market, more like a handful of street traders. The selection is limited too and not at all cheap compared to local businesses although some of the stuff is unique. I enquired about a stall a while back but because what i was wanting to sell wasn't in line with the spirit of the "market" i was told i couldn't have one.
On a similar perspective, Haldanes old place would have had good potential if someone could have taken it on before poundland and divvied it up into small stalls. We could have potentially had a great market with 30-40 or more different small businesses in there as i know several of my friends have some decent business ideas and would have jumped at the chance to take on a stall instead of being lumbered with a 5 year lease on a decaying building with no parking outside and crap footfall.

**nightspirit** · 15-Sep-12, 21:05

the 1st time i was in wick to meet my now wifer there was over 13 stalls all the way into market square and on several occasions ofer it slowly dwindled. to the sorry stae of 2 or 3 it wa when i was up in aug. Though it has been worse i remember once just being 2 stalls.

**secrets in symmetry** · 15-Sep-12, 23:13

Can anyone tell me how long this Saturday market has been running?

My grannie claims it's a new fangled thing that didn't exist in her day.

**nightspirit** · 16-Sep-12, 12:07

been travelling up and dpwn for last 9 years and it has been there so at least 9 years as far as i know.

**Eilanboy** · 17-Sep-12, 14:49

Originally Posted by nightspirit

the 1st time i was in wick to meet my now wifer there was over 13 stalls all the way into market square and on several occasions ofer it slowly dwindled. to the sorry stae of 2 or 3 it wa when i was up in aug. Though it has been worse i remember once just being 2 stalls.

Must have been something special on nightspirit.I can never remember seeing that amount of stalls in a normal Saturday.Quite often in the winter there are only the two regular ones but at least they turn out regardless of the weather and hopefully they will continue to do so.

**Croftergirl** · 17-Sep-12, 17:59

The Market Square stalls were set up by the 4f partnership around 13-14 years ago. The 4f partnership was run by Julie Crowe, John Henderson, Patricia Sugherland and Rod Pimm. 4f stood for Food, Farmin, Fishing, and Forestry and was set up to promote local businesses and to help businesses get information about what they wished to do.The market square stalls were originally run by the 4f. They were there for anyone to hire and the intention was to take them to Thurso, and anywhere else that wished to have a regular market. As a few folk have said it ran quite successfully for some time, ran by Julie Crowe, the co-ordination of the 4f partnership.

When funding was withdrawn Julie gave up her post, this coincided with a bout if ill health for her. Anyone who wished a stall was given as much help as they needed to get their idea up and running, this includes quite a few of the current stall holders. The market stalls were then handed over to the current team who run it. I believe it is Mrs Armitage you contact to book a stall now, I'm sure she will be very helpful towards anyone who wishes to run a stall. It would be lovely to see it back up and runnin at full strength. As has been said before there are lots of small businesses who could benefit from a while on the square gettin their products known.

I think sadly the 4f partnership was ahead of its time, people now are looking for local food, local products, local knowledge and that's what 4f was about. But that's how it goes sometimes.

(before anyone asks how I know this, Julie is my mother, I helped set stands up many times, lugged the poles in and out of storage, which was originally our shed!! I'm sorry if I have forgotten anyone who helped set up the 4f partnership, it's not my intention to cause any offence.)

**rooby** · 17-Sep-12, 18:43

I have been trying to start up something similar in Latheron village hall, on perhaps a monthly basis, tables selling local produce etc. I had ONE enquiry! Still willing to try, if anyone is interested, but the lack of interest/enthusiasm has overwhelmed me.

**gillygirl** · 17-Sep-12, 20:06

In fact, Mey Market has been going for two years now and its main emphasis is on local products. Finding stallholders is not as easy at it might seem, and although not duplicating stalls might seem illogical, Mey also has to follow this idea though restricting it to no more than two very similar stalls. The logic of this is that income in a market here is quite low. If one stall takes a reasonable amount and other stalls are introduced selling the same things then that income is probably half or less and no stall is viable, plus in a limited space there needs to be a good variety of stalls otherwise customers will stop coming. Food stalls are always difficult to get and keep. In a thriving market in a city with lots of space and lots of customers this doesn't apply. Mey Market tries to cater to visitors but also to locals and has to put the customer experience first, but anyone can enquire about a stall and will be given every encouragement though there is often a waiting list. We try to maintain an high standard and try different options, even having awaydays (Pulteneytown Centre this Saturday) to get people interested and reach as many customers as possible. Running a market and keeping it going in an area such as this is tough, but we try our best.

**nightspirit** · 17-Sep-12, 20:44

Originally Posted by Eilanboy

Must have been something special on nightspirit.I can never remember seeing that amount of stalls in a normal Saturday.Quite often in the winter there are only the two regular ones but at least they turn out regardless of the weather and hopefully they will continue to do so.

quite possibly - shame it is getting smaler same with the one in grenock it started with about 8 - 10 stalls now lucky if there are 4.