Brand new for 2025, the Rochdale Exchange are announcing the reopening of the market for the town. Since 2014, when the struggling market moved out of the shopping centre, it has tried to find a home in various locations across the town and ultimately found a good solid base as an outdoor market on The Butts.
When the shopping centre was bought by the Adhan Group just over a year ago, it was made a priority to bring the market area back to life after it’s laid dormant for a decade. A successful town centre always has a good quality market within it, as we can see with our neighbouring towns and the first retail property bought by the Adhan Group, The Mall Blackburn which has a thriving market within it.
After several months of works such as bringing the decoration up to date, electrics and other works to make the area compliant, we are entering the final stages now of the works and hope to have them completed by the end of January.
The market is going to reopen under the new brand of Pioneers Market and will carry the names of many of the original Pioneers through the stalls and the first female Pioneer in Eliza Brierley. There will also be information boards around the centre detailing what we know about some of the Pioneers that created the innovative movement without our town and ultimately the world.
The Pioneers Market will work closely with the outdoor market on The Butts and operate the same days of Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, in order to offer a full market experience for people visiting Rochdale. There’s a potential for nearly 80 stalls, with small starter shops around the perimeter and we are targeting traders who will bring products that are in demand by our local community, but also artisan products that will help us stand out from other markets.
With significant investment brought into the centre through these works by the Adhan Group, 2025 is set to be a year of growth for the shopping centre. On the back of deals done to bring retailers in throughout last year to units that had laid vacant for several years, it is proving to be a very positive time for retail life in Rochdale Exchange.
We are already receiving a large number of requests for information on the stalls, and would invite all interested parties to email markets@rochdaleexchange.co.uk – you will then receive an email with an application form to complete and will be reviewed to ensure that offer we create within that space creates a strong, vibrant market offer.
Centre Manager, Martin Ballard with Samii Jinx, professional model for Anne Stokes Gothic Artist – the sort of unique products the market is hoping to become home to.
