Heritage leisure and retail destination records best weekend since re-opening

The weekend of Friday 19 to Sunday 21 November saw The Piece Hall in Halifax record its biggest weekend since re-opening in 2017 following its £19m conservation and transformation.

The footfall peak coincided with the first weekend of Winter Makers Markets at the venue, as visitors showed support for local independent retail.

Figures from The Piece Hall’s automated footfall monitoring have shown the first weekend of markets helped bring 58,580 people into the Grade I-listed venue.

This supports broader figures suggesting November is also set to be The Piece Hall’s busiest month to date since reopening in 2017.

The weekend visitor boost was also a success for some of The Piece Hall’s 40 resident independent traders, and The Piece Hall’s own restaurant, the Trading Rooms, saw its busiest ever day in the same weekend.

The latest figures suggest not only the venue’s continued recovery following the lifting of pandemic restrictions, but also considerable growth on pre-pandemic visitor levels; the venue’s last Christmas market in 2019 brought in 37,918 people.

Nicky Chance-Thompson, chief executive of The Piece Hall Trust, said: “The fact we’ve had such an incredible weekend is testament to the hard work of our team since we reopened, as well as the resilience and determination of our wonderful independent retailers who have worked hard to help bring people back through our historic gates.

“The demand we have seen – which not only compares to but exceeds that of pre-pandemic levels – is another step forward in The Piece Hall’s growth trajectory since its transformation, and we can’t wait to share more exciting plans for the future.

“It also demonstrates the appetite people have to get out and about again and support their local traders, particularly in the all-important run-up to Christmas.

“The festive shopping period is a big event in the calendar for many large retailers, but we really encourage people to consider doing things a little differently this year and choosing to support independent retailers.”