How to make the most of York's new-look Shambles Market? We asked an expert - and the market's new manager...

MICHAEL Hopkinson knows about local markets. As a geographer and former York St John University lecturer he's visited markets across Yorkshire and throughout Europe, studying what makes them work.

So what does he make of York's new-look Shambles market following its expensive refit?

Well... some things are much better, he says. It is great that the new canopies provide better shelter from the weather. The food and flowers stalls work well, as does Jubbergate and the area around Gert & Henry's. In fact, there's a good vibe about the whole northern end of the market from King's Square through to Parliament Street. But as for the rest ... well, it could be better admits the academic, who is now part of PLACE, the People, Landscape & Cultural Environment research centre based at York St John.

Dr Michael Hopkinson at Shambles Market

We invited Dr Hopkinson to visit Shambles market to look at what is still not working properly - and make some suggestions for improvements. Here's what he had to say...

Problems

• Unlike when it was temporarily based in Parliament Street, the market is very enclosed and hidden away, Dr Hopkinson says, and surrounded by buildings which are unappealing or else ‘turn their back’ on the market, such as Marks & Spencer.
• Signage, especially from the Shambles side, is often poor and difficult to spot. Even in King's Square, which itself was expensively refurbished not long ago, there is only one sign directing visitors to the market. "And would you have noticed it?" he asks.

Signage to the market is often poor and difficult to spot, Dr Hopkinson says

• There are no fewer than nine pedestrian entrances to the market (go and count them if you don't believe this), but many of these (especially from Silver Street those from Shambles) are unappealing. Stand in these entrances and look towards the market and there is little to see that would make you want to come in to explore, Dr Hopkisnon says. The litter bins placed in Silver Street really don't do it.
• The layout of the market doesn't really work. There is no proper focal point, and while there is a reasonable through-flow at the northern end of the market, there is little to attract people down to the south end.
• The new canopies are good in terms of providing shelter, but why are they such a drab colour? "Even on a sunny day, they make it look grey," he says. Other markets have stalls that are brightly coloured, often in stripes. Why didn't York do that?
• The food court, while a good idea, is cold and uninviting, with no direct sunlight, no greenery, and surrounded by uninviting blank walls and uninviting entrances off Shambles. And the new kiosks, like the canopies, are a strangely drab colour.
• There is not enough variety in the stalls - and yet at the same time there may be too many pitches. "York is trying to maintain a seven day market and offers 80 pitches, but struggles to fill 30," Dr Hopkinson says. "Forty to 50 seems most viable." The market's off centre location, meanwhile - ie not being on Parliament Street - is a 'major detraction'.
• The 10am-4pm opening hours are a also problem. They mean most locals who work can only visit at weekends - yet the market is trying to be a daily market.

Streets leading to the market need to do more to draw visitors in, Dr Hopkinson says

Solutions

Stall holders and market managers alike need to think about what customers want, then try to ensure the market provides that, Dr Hopkinson says. Changes in shopping habits and increased competition from bargain stores mean the market can't just continue doing what it traditionally did years ago, relying on lower overheads to undercut shops on price.

Here are some of his suggestions for improvements - often borrowed from other markets in Yorkshire or further afield...

• The market could include more craft stalls and even collector's fairs, Dr Hopkinson says, to add variety and draw in different customers.
• Stalls could be organised in sub-sections, so that different areas of the market offered different things.
• Wall paintings on some of the buildings facing into the market - including perhaps some trompe l'oeil designs - would brighten it up no end. This has worked well at Knaresborough, Dr Hopkinson says.
• Potted plants would help to brighten up the food court.
• Streets leading into the market, for example Silver Street, could have some stalls of their own. These would draw people into the market from outside, as happens at Jubbergate.
• There needs to be some kind of focal central space, perhaps including information boards and even exhibition space.
• Opening hours could be extended into the early evening, to give working people the chance to visit. And why not some live jazz or other music to brighten the evenings up?
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THE MARKET MANAGER

Before he took on the job of Make It York's city centre and markets manager a few weeks ago, Chris Price had spent eight years as manager of WH Smith in Coney Street.

So he knows about the importance of giving customers what they want, and creating the right 'ambience', layout and flow.

In his first few weeks, he has been listening and learning, he says. "I've spent time talking to traders. There are some who have been here for many, many years, through different scenarios." But the 51-year-old fully accepts that there are things that could be done to make the market work better. Traders each have their own viewpoint, he says. "So I've been listening to them all to help me formulate the way forward."

New market manager Chris Price  has been listening to the opinions of traders about how to improve the market

To have input like that from Dr Hopkinson, however, is a 'fabulous help', he says.

So what is his response to Dr Hopkinson's suggestions - and what are his plans for the market's future? Here's what he had to say...

• The food court. There will indeed be trees or other potted plants paced around the food court to make it greener and more attractive, he says. The 'drab' surfaces of the new kiosks, together with the blank wall overlooking the food court, will soon be transformed, meanwhile. The screen cladding which lines them has been designed with cut-out shapes, and lights are being installed behind these. "When they are switched on, they will be quite bright and attractive, especially as the evenings get a bit darker," Mr Price says. The hope is the lights will have been installed by next week: so you should soon be able to see for yourselves. As an added attraction, there might also be opportunities for buskers in the food court, Mr Price says.
• Entrances to the market. These will need to be looked at individually, he says, but there will be opportunities to 'upgrade' them. "We need to look at what you can see from each entrance that will give you a reason to come in."
•  Rubbish bins in Silver Street. Bins are essential to ensure the market remains clean and tidy, Mr Price says. But at least the bins in Silver Street have now been put behind screens so they are less obtrusive.
• The suggestion that Newgate is 'hidden away'. Not so, Mr Price says. It is right at the heart of York, and you can see The Minster from the market. "That's a lovely backdrop." One of Europe's most popular tourist streets, Shambles, is also just the length of a snickleway away. So the market has huge potential, once the right atmosphere can be created.
• Craft stalls and evening opening. "We're looking at an idea at the moment for an early-evening craft market," says Mr Price. "We've already asked local people who develop their own crafts. It would be a good opportunity to offer their goods in the centre of York."
• Wall paintings. "I think that's a good idea," Mr Price says. "We've still got the opportunity to look to develop the whole space and environment. We want to develop the market into a vibrant space with some atmosphere and a reason to be there."

Not everything will happen overnight, Mr Price warns. "We're getting ideas, developing ideas, but we need time." Nevertheless, a year from now he hopes the market will be a must-visit part of the city centre, popular with visitors and tourists alike. "I would hope (by then) to see a vibrant market with a great variety of offerings, filled with residents and visitors spending quality time there."