makeshift

Technological advancement today has reached unprecedented speed. Increased performance and physical shrinking of everything from computers to music players cater for the mass market in terms of sheer convenience.

Nothing could be more true than sales of music over the last three decades. Vinyl sales have declined steadily since the introduction of physically smaller mediums the 1970's, the 8 track followed by the audiocassette in the 1980ís. The apparent death knell for vinyl struck during the 1990's, with the rise of compact disc and finally online music, with digital music sales from Apple’s iTunes store alone selling 8.5 billion songs since 2003.

Shifts in music format market ultimately come down to a form of convenience.  Vinyl was replaced by the portable walkman that played cassettes, which in turn was superseded by compact disc - although larger played audio at a noticeably higher quality. The rise of Mp3 in the late 1990's presents an interesting paradox; in terms of audio quality it wasn’t great; but its compression allowed it to be shared easily and is small enough so that you can now fit thousands of songs on one player makes it more convenient for the average consumer to buy digital. In other words, Mp3 wasn’t technically very good, but it was good enough to the point where the music industry did a 180-degree turn and inaugurated the digital music revolution.

Now let’s look at the steady decline of the traditional market in the same period.  Until the 1950's, the traditional market model has been the basis for economic growth the world over, and certainly for urban growth in the UK. Chesterfield market in Derbyshire, for example, has been in operation since 1165.  However, the rise of the supermarket and the convenience it afforded the average consumer has been fundamental to its growth. This coupled with ever-sophisticated volume distribution has allowed supermarkets to out-price its competitors in the traditional open-air market. Throw in the fact that supermarkets house most goods the average consumer needs in a controlled environment; and its little wonder why consumers choose to shop at Tesco over the open air market in the middle of a British winter.

Competition from supermarkets has not been helped by poor planning choices by councils over the country. A lack of investment in covered market halls, in addition to absurd planning regulations that discourage market traders yet favour the supermarket have all contributed to the decline of the market. Furthermore, out of town shopping centres now compete with high street discount retailers for a portion of the market share in consumer goods. 

It is hardly surprising then to learn that the total revenue generated by all the independent traders in every market in the UK accounts for just between £1-3 billion pounds a year, contrasting with Tesco’s 2008 annual sales revenue figure of £41.5 billion. The increasing market share provided by online shopping (of which major supermarkets generate a great deal of income as well) does not bode well for traditional market stallholders without the resources to provide convenience for their customers.

But let’s return to vinyl. Vinyl sales from the music major labels although a fraction of what they were three decades ago have actually remained steady.  Even stranger is the spiralling growth of vinyl sales for independent labels and artists. There are many factors contributing towards this resurgence: nostalgia, a cult following from audiophiles, collectability, the popularity of the DJ revolution, large-scale artwork and detailed liner notes, etc.  Vinyl has a number of unique selling points that appeal to consumers who want a flavour of authenticity to their musical purchase, now largely devoid of character when lost in a seeming plethora of 'homogenised' digital music.  

This unique niche overcomes convenience in favour of experience. The experience of concentrating on the record, as there is less choice and more attention involved in playing the music, in addition to time spent admiring the artwork . Here then lies the potential for the future of the market; a unique shopping opportunity made up of a community of traders and consumers, which celebrates speciality goods and regionalism in a way that supermarkets and chain stores can’t. Local traders selling local products makes one market in one part of Britain completely different from another, and therefore makes it worth visiting.

There is a real sense of place about markets that is entwined with our nations culture. It supports local businesses and encourages spending in the local economy and can reduce our environmental impact by buying local products. Often, products ranging from fresh fish to fishing tackle can be bought cheaper than everywhere else.  The spaces of markets themselves are flexible to offer added value, such as live music, artworks, ethnic food; the list goes on.  All these ‘added value’ programmes, just like vinyl records, offer an experience, over convenience.  Farmers markets in the UK and successful markets such as Queen Victoria Market in Melbourne offer a unique experience to visitors, combining a vibrant day and nightly events that effectively tie together the idea of markets with all of its independent restaurants, bars, and entertainers through careful management and promotion for the benefit of all.  

The market of the future offers more than just buying and selling. One idea is to propose a ‘shared stall’ scheme, where traders specialising in wool for example, share stall space (or two stalls) with the local knitting group, advertising free knitting lessons to the general public, with supply within arms reach. The same can be said of cooking classes next to fresh produce. How about kids toys next to a managed ‘kids corner’?

The future growth of markets lies here: it is about experience.  Just like the experience that vinyl records give for music lovers can be applied to a thriving market community that offers culture, leisure, and education in addition to simply buying and selling. It is time we pushed what makes markets great and celebrate the unique place that markets have to offer us.