The Future of Markets in Eccles Town Centre - Options Advisory

Eccles has a proud market heritage, but in recent years, activity has dwindled to just a single format with a handful of traders and very limited footfall. With the town centre preparing for major regeneration alongside Muse, Salford Council asked us to help clarify what a future market offer should look like, and how it can genuinely contribute to the town’s renewal.

We reviewed Eccles’ market history and performance, national sector trends, local demographics and trading conditions, and carried out in-depth engagement with stakeholders including Council teams, market operators, former traders and the wider regeneration partnership.

Using this insight, we developed a long list of market and market adjacent formats tailored to Eccles. These ranged from early, low cost activity that can rebuild confidence to larger mixed use market models that could form part of the future town centre. Each option was assessed for strategic fit, deliverability, operational requirements and financial performance before being refined into a focused shortlist.

A key part of the work was a project gateway workshop, where we brought decision-makers together to agree the key objectives for reintroducing market activity. This session helped move the conversation beyond generic models and into a shared understanding of why a market matters, what success looks like locally, how it can support a community, and how it should align with the wider masterplan. This created a strong foundation for the detailed feasibility and business planning that followed.

The outcome is a clear and flexible framework for reintroducing market activity in Eccles. It supports early interventions that can re engage the community, as well as longer term market formats that can contribute to a stronger, more distinctive town centre. This culminated in a clear, realistic framework for shaping a future market offer that is deliverable, distinctive and grounded in Eccles’ needs and opportunities.

The work provides the Council with practical, evidence based options that can be delivered as funding, phasing and opportunity allow.