10/05/2026
Hi Stevenage Borough Council,
I wanted to raise some concerns following trading at the indoor market pop-up in Stevenage Town Centre yesterday.
As a small independent business trader, I was really disappointed with the experience. My stall was positioned in an area with very little footfall or customer activity, which had a significant impact on sales — I only made one sale all day.
What was particularly concerning is that there seems to be very little advertising or public awareness that the market has moved to its new location. If local residents and shoppers don’t know where the market is, traders are being put at an unfair disadvantage from the start.
Another issue is trader access and parking. There doesn’t appear to be any free or practical parking arrangement for traders, meaning I had to pay £7.10 to park in the multi-storey and then carry all of my stock, equipment, tables and display materials across to the venue. For small businesses, this adds unnecessary cost, physical strain, and makes the experience far less viable.
I fully understand that some trading days are quieter than others, but the lack of promotion, poor stall placement, and trader logistics made this feel avoidable.
I’d appreciate understanding:
* What marketing has been done to promote the market’s new location?
* How stall placement is decided for traders?
* Whether trader parking/loading arrangements can be improved?
* What support is being put in place to help increase footfall for independent traders?
Small businesses invest time, money, and effort into attending these events, so it’s important that the setup gives us a fair opportunity to succeed.
Thank you, and I look forward to your response.Stevenage Borough Council Stevenage Borough Council