Page 23 - MarketTimesJune2016
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former Greatie trader who started Matalan. Kirstie Doyle went on from Greatie to be
named as the BBC’s Young Designer of the Year and she now runs a successful business in London.
John Zack is another successful Greatie graduate who is now a fashion designer and manufacturer in London. And Tony Caldeira, who used to sell cushions on the market, is a politician who is hoping to become Mayor of Liverpool.
The market used to be a mecca for Liverpudlians, especially the women, who enjoyed the chat and craic as much as the shopping.
And there are still plenty of Scousers who visit Greatie every Saturday without fail to meet up with old friends, chew the fat and pick up some bargains.
They include brother and sister John Doherty
and Bernie McHugh. “We have been coming here every Saturday for as long as we can remember, and we still come, rain or shine, to meet up and enjoy the market,” Bernie said.
Greatie has had various locations on Great Homer Street. Until 10 years ago it was in a building called St Martin’s which was demolished to make way for an NSPCC centre that was supported by a £6 million donation from John Hargreaves.
The market was moved into the former Iceland building and a difficult decade followed with Greatie split. The indoor was on one side of the street and outdoor traders on the other.
Liverpool City Council has been running its markets as a joint venture with Geraud Markets (UK) for some time and they realised they needed to find a new home for Greatie as part of a major redevelopment of the area.
Project Jennifer is the £150 million redevelopment of the area between Great Homer Street and Scotland Road to provide 80,000 square feet of retail space, with Sainsbury’s the anchor store.
Coun Malcolm Kennedy, cabinet member for regeneration for Liverpool City Council, with overall responsibility for markets, said: “This new district shopping centre has been on the cards for 15 years and it is now taking shape, so we had to move the market.”
He said the council had invested £3 million in the refurbishment of a former building company’s premises as a new market hall, with a giant canopy protecting stalls on part of the outside market and on-site parking.
More investment will pay for an extension to the canopy and buildings on an adjoining site are set to be demolished to create additional parking.
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