Dudley Market stall fees cut to entice traders
Stall fees are being cut at Dudley Market in a bid to entice more traders to set up stalls in the town.
Traders have taken over the day-to-day running of the historic market from Dudley Council and are drawing up a new rent structure in the wake of a £6.7m revamp.
Stall-holders have seen an initial rise in prices after concessionary rates offered during the redevelopment were ended.
A new company called Dudley Market Traders started running the market on October 3.
Managing director, Len Lenihan, said: "For the last two years we have had concessionary rates while the work was ongoing. That was something we negotiated with the council.
"That has ended now and the council were going to re-instate the proper rent structure.
"What we are going to do is to actually lower the rent from the end of this month on four of the six days we operate.
"It won't be down to the concessionary rate but traders will benefit from lower rates."
The reduced rates will initially be targeted at those days where trading on the market is quiet.
On Monday, the price for a stall will fall from £14 to £10, on Tuesday and Thursday it will fall from £15 to £12 and on Friday it will drop from £19 to £12.
Saturday will remain the most expensive day for traders, with an outdoor spot costing £21 and indoor stalls priced at £18 for the day.
Mr Lenihan hopes fees will eventually be brought down on each day of the week. And in an extra boost for traders, all stalls on all days will cost just £10 between January and March. Mr Lenihan added: "These are considerable reductions. We are hoping to increase attendances and then to look at the other days and reduce them too. The idea is to bring the rents down to a lower level across the board.
"When we have found the right pricing level we can look at the historic problems in terms of Friday and Saturday which cost more. They are no longer the busier days. Maybe Saturday is a little busier but not the the extent of £21."
While traders have taken over the running of the market, Dudley Council has retained ownership.
Plans by the stallholders include opening on Sundays from October 25 up to Christmas. Dudley Market Traders is a not-for-profit organisation.
