Death knell for Brownhills Market

Brownhills Market has been scrapped just over six months after its much-trumpeted return, it was announced today.

LSD Promotions has pulled the plug on the Silver Street site after business plunged.

The market last Saturday was the final one, with the decision to axe it coming less than six weeks after bosses closed the Thursday event.

There were 80 stalls following its initial two-day-a- week relaunch but just five traders were present last weekend.

Talks with Walsall Council over finding a new location failed, prompting the decision.

LSD promotions director Dermot McGillicuddy said: "We are disappointed as we were really hopeful that we could make a go of it.

"We did everything that was possible to encourage traders to come. But the numbers went down and the shoppers didn't come out. If it had carried on this Saturday there would have been just two traders."

The market operators, who run the town's successful Bescot Sunday event, were brought in by the council last November to stage Brownhills on Thursdays and Saturdays.

It is the latest blow to the market which dates back more than 40 years. In June 2009 it closed after then landlords Spook Erections failed to agree a new contract. Weeks later it was revived by council bosses but collapsed again in 2010.

Regeneration chief councillor Adrian Andrew admitted there were no immediate plans for a market to return to Brownhills. But plans to create a public square which could hold markets near the High Street, as part of the Tesco expansion, were still on-going. But this is unlikely to be completed until 2013.

Councillor Andrew said: "We have tried absolutely everything to make Brownhills Market a success bar paying customers to come here."