News from Stirchley Community Market (& Happy 12th Birthday to us!)

Hello - it has been a while!

There are lots of new people in the area - welcome. You may have heard rumours of a Stirchley Community Market and we have been laying low for a bit.

The market has been on a two year break. On what is our twelfth birthday, we'd like to gauge interest in us staging a return. We'd LOVE to get back to putting on markets at our home in Stirchley Baths main hall later in the year.

What we need in order to do that is community support! Including volunteers in the run up and on the day of the market, and of course a roster of stallholders.

Read on for how you can support the market - we look forward to returning!

Can you support
Stirchley Community Market?

Would you like to volunteer?

We need help on the day of the market, as well as in the run up to it. Please get in touch via email! stirchleycommunitymarket@gmail.com

Would you like to have a stall at the next market?

Fill in this form if you do. Please note application does not guarantee a spot.

Can you financially support the market?

You can support the market using this link to the ko-fi platform.

More about Stirchley Community Market....

Our first market was held on 27 July 2010 with local businesses and community groups selling their wares. We also had street food; sourdough pizzas from Loaf, along with curry from the Cottage. There's a write-up of the first market below in a newspaper clipping from Birmingham Express.

The market is entirely ran by volunteers - it took place on the first Tuesday of the month for a decade, before having a break during the pandemic. The market is an opportunity for people to visit Stirchley and see what it has to offer - which is very different in 2022, compared to the early days of the market in 2010!

Lots of local independent businesses started out at Stirchley Community Market before having bricks and mortar shops/warehouse, including Loaf, Birmingham Bike Foundry, Meatshack, Isherwood and Co, Ten Four Bakehouse and more. Pip's Hot Sauce also started off the back of having a small spot sharing a stall with Rachel from Cuffufle Preserves. The Stirchley Community Market legacy is a good one!

And did you know there is a Stirchley Community Market song? By Newton Chambers. It was on Spotify but I couldn't find it there - it's on Amazon music!

We are planning for the market to move to a Saturday date, as this works better for our new committee and it gives more potential for growth. We'll make sure to fit these around other local markets as best we can - including Kings Norton Farmers Market, Moseley Farmers Market, and Kings Heath Farmers Market.

We look forward to returning and bringing your community market back to Stirchley.

All the best,
Team SCM volunteers
Meg, Zoë, Chloë, Olivia, Kerry and Iryna

--

Here are a few very low resolution photos from the past!

Bikes at the first SCM on 27 July 2010 at the Working Mens Club (now Seven Capital land)

Birmingham Express feature 30 July 2010

Outside the Working Mens Club, June 2012

Outside the Stirchley United Working Mens Club, July 2013

Cuffufle Preserves, outside the Working Men's Club, September 2014

Stirchley Community Market's 5th birthday - committee & regular stallholders! The market had moved to the British Oak at this point as the Working Mens Club was demolished to make room for Tesco (now Seven Capital development) taken July 2015. Check out the rainbow cake by Mrs Mills!

After having our monthly market at The British Oak as a temporary measure between finding a final home, the market moved to Stirchley Baths! Which is the perfect venue for us with seating down the middle for chats and a cuppa and right next to Stirchley Park. Photo March 2016.

We have a fab outside area at Stirchley Baths which is perfect for summer months. Photo 2017.

See you later in the year!

Sign up for our newsletter here.