HAYLEY and Dave's fruit, veg and flowers on Radcliffe market thanks customers and fellow stallholders for their support over the past year. Due to what we see as a lack of support from the market committee and management, in advertising and promotion, we are unable to continue trading.

It is mainly because of the shortage of people shopping at the market that we cannot survive. We are disappointed that markets manager Mr John Ayres is seemingly prepared to spend money on advertising the monthly car boot sale - and then appearing in the local press bragging about how busy and successful it is - but is not prepared to promote the market.

What is the point in offering stalls at a reduced rate to the unemployed? In my opinion the existing stallholders should be looked after first!

For example, I was paying £114 for three days' trading and I wanted a plug socket on my stall so that I could use my electric scales and fan (there is no cooling system in the market). I was told I would have to pay £280 to have an electricity point. Also, last December I was allowed to trade at the side of Boots Chemists selling Christmas trees and I was charged the same as I would be for a stall. I didn't mind that. But when spring came I wanted to do the same sort of thing again, selling bedding plants, and was refused permission. Yet a fellow stallholder, who I admire for trading for many years, is allowed to sell plants outside, near the top entrance.

Many readers will probably think this letter is "sour grapes" but at the end of the day I am Radcliffe born and bred and I want what is best for the town, and especially the market.

Where is the rent money from the stalls and the car boot sales being spent? I hope that this letter does not fall on deaf ears and that something is done soon to help the market and remaining stallholders, otherwise there will be more empty stalls.

It makes me wonder whether Mr Ayres, providing good reason could be found, would like to close our market so that we could all go to Bury's £5 million revamped market and turn Radcliffe into one big park-and-ride.

We feel upset and very disappointed. We have had to stop trading because you can only continue for so long making little, if any, profit. We gave it 100 per cent and worked hard. We have made a lot of friends along the way and we hope everyone will understand our decision and that we haven't inconvenienced anyone.

DAVE AND HAYLEY

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.