Worker Bee Markets are run by me, Clare Simpson. I’m a seasoned market trader and a marketing expert with over 30 years experience of marketing the arts and organising events
In 2018, I saw a gap for a new kind of market organiser, who wants to help serve local communities with the best artisan and local produce stalls, whilst giving traders the best opportunities to showcase and sell quality handmade goods. Worker Bee Markets will always prioritise traders who make their own products as we want our customers to meet the maker where possible. We’ll also prioritise really local makers and support new makers starting out.
Our events bring a mix of brand new makers, dipping their toes in the handmade market scene, seasoned passionate traders who make this their full time career and talented hobbyists who are spreading their love of fresh food and handmade crafts.
2026 EVENTS
Eight years since we started organising markets and the world has changed. We’ve moved from organising simple monthly markets, which no longer work for anyone except organisers as customers have less and less money to spend and traders struggle to make ends meet, especially when they are paying higher and higher prices for stalls. This year, we’re cherry-picking the best of the best – events we are confident will be fun for customers to attend and will offer the best opportunities for traders to sell their creatively made products.
We’ve moved to a new and better venue in Reddish – more central, less windy and far more welcoming. So far, we’ve agreed four great events at the Houldsworth Arms Pub on Houldsworth Square. And in the summer we’ve been invited to take part in Bramhall Duck Race and Woodford Summer Fair, both established, fun and popular local community events.
We’ve also secured a whole range of Special Events in Bramhall Village Square. These monthly events will include celebrations of Mother’s Day, International Food & Craft, Bramhall Day, Homes & Gardens and plenty more.
2025 MARKETS
Our most successful regular markets continued in 2025. Reddish (monthly) and Bramhall (bi-monthly) included special events and lots of stalls.
We took part in other events around Stockport throughout the year, including working with Bramhall & Woodford Rotary on their annual Duck Race at Bramall Hall in May, a special summer market in Woodford in June and a Festive Market near Wilmslow in November.
2024 MARKETS
The weather wasn’t kind. Sadly, three of our markets (and lots of other events for other traders) were cancelled due to horrendous weather conditions and named storms.
We were back in Reddish at Broadstone Mill on the last Saturday of the month from March – October, with the popular Festive Family Fun Day in November cancelled. We also ran regular themed seasonal markets on Edgeley, though the April event was cancelled and every other month in Bramhall as well as one special event in Hazel Grove later in the year.
We were invited back to the Seashell Trust in Cheadle Hulme for their popular Seashell Summer Fair, we joined Bramhall & Woodford Rotary to run the walled garden market at Bramall Hall for the Bramhall Duck Race and joined Bramhall Together Trust for Light Up Bramhall.
We also expended our offer with lots of live music and entertainment and we offered three free workshops, run by our talented makers, to give the public an insight into crochet, beaded jewellery and crystal wreath-making.
2023 MARKETS
We ran our popular Reddish Markets at Broadstone Mill (almost) every month. We ran regular seasonal events on Edgeley and in Bramhall and Heald Green. We also got involved with Summer and Festive events in Woodford, Cheadle Hulme and the centre of Stockport. Our highlight was probably running community Festival REDDFEST in the centre of Reddish.
2022 MARKETS
This year, a sigh of relief went round the artisan market community when we managed to fulfill all our commitments to communities – no covid cancellations meant we were back on track with 23 markets in five very different venues. We also ran a Charity Christmas Raffle, raising funds and awareness for the Mayor of Stockport’s chosen charities.
2021 MARKETS
We increased our profile and events in places where we had found the best footfall and support in previous years, as well as running the Artisan Market at Bramhall Festival and running a couple of Christmas Markets at Manchester Rugby Club in Cheadle Hulme.
2020 MARKETS
With 2020 a bit of a right-off for the majority of events, our seven face to face markets, were complemented with a couple of Makers’ Takeover events on Facebook in November. What we did discover is that there’s a niche for our kind of market and that customers and venues love it when we visit. In particular, Bramhall and Reddish proved hugely popular, as did Poynton, though they didn’t want us back at Brookside in 2021, possibly because we were so popular we caused issues with the traffic!
2019 MARKETS
This year was about establishing our position on the market circuit, with regular events in North Bramhall, Gatley and Heald Green as well as pop-up events in Bramhall Village, Seashell Trust, Reddish, Hazel Grove, Cheadle Hulme and Marple Bridge.
2018 MARKETS
The first ever Worker Bee Market was in North Bramhall in April. This was followed by four more at the Scout Hut, four in Heald Green and pop-up events in Didsbury and Manchester.
Worker Bee Markets had arrived on the scene!
If you’d like to become a Worker Bee Market trader, please contact me
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Worker Bee Markets Events 