THE Market will be playing host to some of the region’s most enterprising young people on Saturday, June 5, as part of a national competition.
Warrington will welcome back traders, aged between 16 and 30, with the return of the Young Traders Market.
The multi-award winning Warrington Market is joining several markets across the country to offer trading opportunities and business support to the budding entrepreneurs.
The Young Traders Market is a countrywide initiative run by the National Market Traders Federation (NMTF), which aims to nurture young talent by encouraging the next generation of entrepreneurs to trade at traditional markets.
Warrington Market is set to bring this initiative back to the town centre after a year’s hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The event will also double as a competition with big prizes to be won, as well as recognition and promotion for the businesses involved.
One of this year’s entrants, Christopher Walster, is the reigning North West Young Trader of the Year.
Chris took part in last year’s online regional finals and has also created the artwork for this year’s Warrington event.
He said: “I’m so excited to finally be returning to Warrington after such a long and difficult year. I’ve loved working with the Warrington team and I jumped at the chance to provide this year’s artwork – to see my work large scale and up inside the market has been such a buzz.
“It’s so great to see that the event is really coming back with a bang too, with a huge line-up of young talent. I’m really looking forward to seeing everything come together on the day.”
More than 50 young people have registered their interest to be involved on the day, with the market team also partnering with Warrington Music [WAM] to host a young talent live music stage as part of the event.
Warrington Market trader, Rob Leicester, who runs Warrington Fruit and Veg, and was the 2018 Young Trader of the Year champion, will return to the event this year – this time in the role of a judge.
Rob Leicester
He added: “Since becoming an ambassador for young market traders across the UK, I’ve found myself driven with responsibility to help, encourage, and hopefully inspire young people like myself in their early years of trading. It’s great that I can continue my Young Traders journey by taking on the role of judge at this year’s event.”
Paul Blaney, operations manager at Warrington Market and Cllr Tom Jennings, cabinet member for economic development and innovation, will make up the rest of this year’s judging panel for the Warrington heat on June 5.
Cllr Jennings said: “The Young Traders Market is a great initiative and I’m so pleased we can welcome this hugely popular event back to Warrington this year. It’s always so encouraging to see so many talented young people come together to showcase their talents and promote their businesses.
“The council has invested in the state-of-art new Warrington Market, which is a fantastic example of how markets are working now and will continue to thrive into the future. We want to ensure there are opportunities available for the next generation of traders so that we can continue to champion independent businesses in Warrington.”
Warrington Market has also been asked by the NMTF to be the host of the North West Regional Final on Saturday, July 3, which will see a collection of winners from both the Warrington heat and from across the region come together for the chance to win a spot at the national finals which take place in Stratford-upon-Avon in August.
Warrington Young Traders Market takes will take place from 9am on Saturday, June 5.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here