Delivering commercial and community vision

The Grade II listed Kendal Market Hall, owned by Westmorland and Furness Council and neighbouring Westmorland Shopping Centre, had steadily lost customers and traders. The council had secured £13.5m of Levelling-Up Funding (LUF) to help revitalise the town centre, and plans included refurbishing the Market Hall building. 

BACKGROUND

Kendal College took a long-term lease to occupy space within the shopping centre for a new campus, which ultimately would bring 400 students into the area. This was an additional catalyst for reimagining the market offer.

The challenge was to create a more attractive space for market sellers and customers, an offer that appealed to more people and to capture the increased footfall.

It required a viable commercial and operational model to make the most of the planned improvements, put the market back in people’s consciousness and make it the heart of the community.

The market offer needed to attract spend and additional footfall while supporting and creating new businesses. It was important that it became a place where people wanted to meet and had space for community activities.

Market Hall also needed to reach a position where it would break even in three years, reducing its current deficit, complementing the overall town centre offer and adding to the attractiveness of Kendal.

During the project, the scope was extended to include a review of the outdoor market taking place in Market Place (Wednesday and Saturday) and how this area might be better used for markets and events.

WHAT WE DID

We started with background research on the town and council’s proposals, gap analysis and market demand. This was to determine what local people and businesses wanted and available viable options.

Stakeholders included the BID, Town Council, college, students, local businesses and the public. We also ran online sessions with Kendal Futures groups, including the Arts and Creatives Action Group and the Placemaking (Landscape & Environment) Action Group.

Drawing on our extensive experience in setting up and managing markets, a vision with a new offer was created. This included the programming of activities and events to provide more reasons to visit Market Hall and Market Place.

That vision was then translated into marketing material to attract new operators and traders to the market and a roadmap for implementation and delivery.

The roadmap included an operational and financial model that detailed the elements needed to successfully run the market, such as staffing requirements and roles, policies and trader management, types of stalls and opening hours.

Westmorland and Furness Council now has an action plan for Market Hall to take forward as the wider refurbishment work is completed and for the outdoor Market Place to be a new space available for markets and events.

WHAT OUR CLIENT SAID

The Assembly Line’s support in assessing options for the future offer, design and operational and commercial models for Kendal’s markets was vital in refining our vision for the exciting ‘Heart of Kendal’ scheme to regenerate the town’s Market Hall and Market Place. The project demanded close engagement and consultation with a wide range of stakeholders to develop an in-depth understanding of Kendal and required expert knowledge of how markets can work successfully in the modern day.” Sam Butcher, Specialist (Economy & Culture), Westmorland and Furness CounciL