Misery as card shop folds after market closure

Mikesh Varma said he lost his customer base after relocating the store

A trader who was forced to relocate his card shop from a town's popular indoor market when unsafe concrete was discovered said the move has put him out of business.

Mikesh Varma ran the Days to Remember gift shop from Bury's Market Hall from 2015 until he - and other stallholders - were told to leave last year by the local council after crumbling concrete was found in the the roof.

He said trade fell "quite dramatically" when he reopened in the nearby Mill Gate shopping centre, and he lost £100,000 in profit and the value of business.

As soon as he moved from the market hall in October 2023, "that was it, you've basically lost your job, your USP [unique selling point] as a market trader", Mr Varma said.

Bury Council is looking into options for the future of the indoor market hall

Bury Council helped traders relocate after surveyors found RAAC concrete in the roof of the 1969 structure.

Businesses were also offered financial support including rent-free and utility bill-free periods to help them through.

Consultants have been asked to draft up costings for options, including rebuilding the site, which a report estimated would cost more than £6m.

Some have vented their frustration at the council for a lack of action on restoring the building 12 months after the emergency closure.

But councillor Charlotte Morris said there was no "quick fix" and all options for the market hall would be looked at "in depth".

She said the roof situation was "more complicated than originally thought", but said the council was "determined that Bury Market will thrive for many generations to come".

“We all love our historic and hugely popular market."

'You're all alone'

Mr Varma told BBC Radio Manchester he was out of business for seven weeks before his shop was relocated to the Mill Gate shopping centre.

He described the new location as his business's "final resting place" after a 70% downturn in trade.

"As soon as you move away from the market, you're losing your family," he said

"It's not just a financial loss, you're losing people's conversations, you're stuck, you're all alone, you're no longer anything to do with the market."

The shop owner said he decided to call time on his business on Saturday, a year since he had to move.

"I've been told to clear out stock and put it into storage - and now I have to find a new job," he said.

"Everyone has different circumstances, some traders had taken loans out for businesses inside that they're paying off while earning probably 50% less.

"It's a tough situation."