Inside the town's new antiques centre
Harborough Antiques Centre, off St Mary’s Road, has actually been building up its business since January, and expects to have 40 retailers and a cafe on board by May.
All the retailers are local people, who rent space at the centre from £30 a month.
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The dealers themselves are not typically present. All their goods are carefully labelled, so when they are sold, the centre knows which dealer to send the cash to.
The business owner is Mrs Timea “Timmy” Makra (47), who lives in Cottingham, Northamptonshire.
“I had a flower business in Market Harborough that I sold four years ago” she said.
“I’ve been looking for a new business opportunity and this seemed ideal.
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“We’ve got a great space here (3,000 square feet), and all our dealers are local people who know their areas very well.”
Harborough Antiques Centre is open now, and will open six days a week - not Mondays, except for Bank Holiday Mondays.
It sells antiques, vintage, retro, up-cycled and some handmade craft items.
“We know the town’s Indoor Market has antiques and retro days, but we complement them” said Timmy.
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“Visitors looking for antiques will visit more than one place in one go - they might spend a whole day visiting antique centres and charity shops.
“They want several places to visit close to each other, so we will be sending people to the market and then people come from Gildings to here.”
She said some of her dealers make a living from antiques, and for others it’s a hobby.
As for goods for sale, they vary from big grandfather clocks to tiny brooches.