Traders 'kept in dark' over new market hall plans

Ray Smith has run a stall selling shoes at Wigan Market for 34 years

Worried traders say they are being "kept in the dark" over their forthcoming move into a new indoor market hall being built in Wigan town centre.

Several business owners told BBC Radio Manchester they did know what their new stalls would look like at the Fettlers shopping centre.

Ray Smith, who has sold shoes at Wigan market for 34 years, said: "They haven't given us any idea of floor plans or how big our stalls are going to be."

Wigan Council said it was working with the market operator to clarify those details and would continue to support traders.

The new indoor market in Wigan town centre is due to open towards the end of 2026

As well as an indoor market hall, the Fettlers shopping centre will include a Hilton hotel, an office block, leisure facilities and about 450 apartments.

It will replace the Galleries shopping centre, which was bought by Wigan Council in 2018 and has since been demolished.

Kathleen Clunan, who sells cold meats and pies at Wigan indoor market hall, said: "I will need new refrigerators, hot displays, rotisseries and slicing machines."

The 61-year-old added: "Those things will cost tens of thousands of pounds and I fear the new indoor market hall won't have the space for everything I have now."

Kathleen Clunan sells cold meats and pies at Wigan indoor market hall

Aidan Thatcher, director of place at Wigan Council, said the local authority had supported the traders.

"We want to put the market hall back in the heart of the town centre," he said.

"The council will pay for things like storage, fridges and cooking facilities."

The council said it had acknowledged a sharp reduction in footfall to the market and had cut rents by 50%.

The local authority also said it had not passed on rises in energy bills and had built a new car park next to the existing indoor market.

Work on a new indoor market hall is under way in Wigan town centre

Some traders said the construction site for the new Fettlers shopping centre had left the existing market hall isolated on the edge of the town centre.

Laura Tomlinson, who has worked at June's Farmhouse Barbecue at Wigan indoor market for 20 years, said: "There's nobody coming in - it's diabolical.

"Eventually it will be bustling but how many businesses will survive until then?"

Laura Tomlinson works at June's Farmhouse Barbecue at Wigan indoor market

The hospitality operator Northern Lights Group has been appointed to manage the indoor market at Fettlers, which is expected to open before Christmas 2026.

The shopping centre will include a new public square, providing an access route to the Victorian Makinson Arcade.

Its name derives from the phrase "in fine fettle", which refers to a piece of metal or pottery which has had its rough edges trimmed.