Shoppers will be able to tuck into a slice of birthday cake when a Lichfield market celebrates 45 years of trading.
The Lichfield Country Market – formally known as Lichfield WI Market – reaches the landmark on December 4.
Trading began in 1964 on the car park of the Goat’s Head – now Barclays Bank – after a resolution was passed in July of that year to start a market in the city. Committee members even agreed to lend £1 each to get the market up and running.
The market has had an interesting history – in 1975 a new ruling meant that the original WI markets had to affiliate to a county market society and after much discussion, Lichfield and District WI Market Limited became the Staffordshire WI Markets Society Limited Lichfield Branch.
In the 1980’s there were a higher number of members and this resulted in regular social events such as trips on the canal, barbecues, evening parties and an annual coach trip visiting other WI Markets across the country.
The present day brings new challenges for Lichfield Country Market members in the form of food hygiene training, registration of kitchens, labelling regulations, and best before dates.
But despite all of these new challenges, the market continues to go from strength to strength.