Those local (and maybe not so local) to Birmingham and the Midlands will know Birmingham is undergoing a major face lift at the moment - this includes the demolition and reconstruction of all things Bull Ring related. The Rag Market in its original place moved temporarily to the old Bus Depot about 2 years ago. As this was only ever a temporary home, Brum council set about building new homes for the fruit and veg and rag markets. Both these buildings opened earlier this year.
Well done Brum Council! Not only are the new buildings warmer, cleaner, brighter, safer and generally better - they have managed to keep the diversity, all round funkiness and general atmosphere of the old rag market well and truly alive.
I always go to the Rag market to buy toiletries (find shower gels half price compared to high-street on some stalls) and chocolate (if you're prepared to live with stuff near to sell-by date then you're laughing)! There are also many other stalls selling (deep breath) pot pourri, branded underwear (Charnos, Marks etc), Marks and Spencer clothes seconds, pet food, camping gear, stationery, Beanie Babies, spices and herbs, branded make up (Lancome, Almay etc), second hand clothes, new start-up designer clothes, fabrics (including lace, ribbon, curtain material etc), Army surplus, cd's, records.. all at cheaper prices than on high street and even many other smaller markets. The nature of markets and competitive prices means you can't always guarantee to get exactly what you want, but if you're prepared to be a little bit flexible and look round the 70 or 80 stalls (in the rag market alone) then give it a try - I'm sure you'll save yourself some money.
Down sides to the markets are at the moment it's a bit like a building site. As they're about 10-15 mins walk from the city centre over (quite literally) where they're building the new Bull Ring it can be tricky to get to. There is a car park on top of the fruit and veg market but I've never used it so I can't comment. I always park in the near by Arcadian where it's about £3 for 3-4 hours.
Even if you are not looking for anything specific, I'd recommend a browse round (it's open on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday) just to take in the atmosphere and diversity of the place. I bet you leave with something!
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