Market traders told to vacate within three weeks

Stafford Market will be demolished under wider plans to regenerate the town centre

A group of market traders have been told they have just three weeks to vacate as the building they are in is due to be demolished.

Stafford’s indoor market is being redeveloped as part of a wider project to regenerate part of the town centre.

Traders had initially thought they might have until the end of the year, enabling them to trade over the busy Christmas period.

Stafford Borough Council said the building needed to be empty by mid-October in order to meet financial deadlines and that it would look into providing alternative premises.

At a meeting on Thursday, traders said they were told they needed to remove all remaining stock by 12 October.

At least two of the traders have announced 50% off sales in an effort to try to clear stock.

Traders were wary about sharing their names publicly for fear of future agreements falling through.

One told the BBC: “It’s just not good enough, three weeks notice, not when you’ve got stock to sell and orders coming in.

“The Saturday when it closes, we’ve got to get out of here – all our stock as well – we’re not allowed back in after that Saturday, not even to collect anything.”

Traders at Stafford Market were told at a meeting on Thursday they had just three weeks left to vacate

Another said: “You purchase goods from week to week that’s going to last you a few weeks.

“So we could have stopped buying a month ago if we’d known a month ago and run the stock down more instead of being stuck with a load of stock.”

A spokesperson for Stafford Borough Council told the BBC the authority had ambitious plans to transform the town centre and part of this included the purchase and demolition of the Guildhall Shopping Centre and derelict former Co-op building.

“We have been looking at any redevelopment of the Co-op to have a market offer as part of the scheme,” they said.

“The planning application for the demolition of a substantial part of the Guildhall, including indoor market, was submitted a few weeks ago.”

They said the council had looked at a temporary relocation but had not been able to find a location which would meet the needs of all the traders.

Any stallholders who wished to continue trading could contact the council’s business growth team for support, they added.