Our market

Basildon Market officially opened to the public over 50 years ago and is still going strong today. It has kept its appeal despite fierce competition from the many retail centres that have sprung up around it because it offers shoppers something different from the cloned chain stores and supermarkets that dominate our high streets.

It is full of character, colour and charm but just as importantly, it provides excellent goods with a quality service, lots of bargains and friendly, knowledgeable traders.

In 1958 a much smaller version of the market traded from the same location working out of traditional stalls. The market was then owned and operated by the Commission for New Towns but was transferred to its present owners in the 1980's and operated by Basildon District Council until the early 1990's when they relinquished control and the current management team took over.

There are 18 traditional stalls, 41 custom-built log cabins and 48 purpose-made shuttered stalls plus 3 mobile facilities enabling the market to offer a much greater range of services than those on offer at other comparable markets.

The market today is owned and managed by BTCM Limited, a private company based in Basildon Town Centre which, in recent years, has invested heavily in the market to ensure it remains one of the premier locations of its type.

During this time we have seen the complete refurbishment of the market toilets; the street lighting upgraded and extended, the surface and adjoining footpaths resurfaced or repaved, log cabins and shuttered stalls built, CCTV installed, the car park refurbished, the complete electricity supply upgraded and, the whole site returned to a more traditional market layout.

There are hanging baskets on display from spring through until autumn and every Christmas the whole site is extensively decorated and illuminated to celebrate the festive season.

Throughout the year there are lots of special events taking place together with the annual ‘birthday bash’ on August bank holiday weekend making the market an even more vibrant and interesting place to visit.

Next time you are in Basildon, don't forget to come and enjoy the sights, sounds, colour and friendly characters that you won't see anywhere else in town.

No trip to Basildon is complete without a visit to the market so we wish to see you very soon.