Trade thrives when sellers can display their wares so that customers can choose what to buy. Some of Britain’s oldest settlements sealed their prosperity when a designated outdoor trading area was established, either by custom or by an official charter. A market cross often advertised the mercantile status. A few small shops often established themselves in the market square, and on specified days the town sprang to life as other vendors piled into the market place and set up temporary stalls or hawked their wares from baskets.

Outdoor trading had drawbacks, especially when the market area began to expand beyond its traditional confines and into neighbouring streets. By the middle of the eighteenth century, Oxford’s stallholders with their roadside pitches and jostling crowds of customers regularly blocked thoroughfares. Dismayed by the chaos, a local group formed to oversee the building of a hall from where butchers, fishmongers and costermongers could ply their wares. Although the original 1770s structure has disappeared, the modern Covered Market in Oxford traces its history back to this hall.

The ad hoc expansion of outdoor markets stemmed from the growing population and the new prosperity some people were enjoying. Demand for a range of goods, from basic provisions to luxury indulgences, was met by an increasing number of suppliers willing to provide them. In any market square and its hinterland, unknown producers and anonymous peddlers could mingle with reputable traders, offloading bad quality or dishonestly obtained goods. In some places live animals shared the market square with purveyors of foodstuff and other supplies, with the attendant risks of contamination. Mess was trampled around the streets on the soles of footwear and noise and bad smells carried on the air.

Suppliers and customers alike had ample reason to curse the changeable British climate. Not only was it unpleasant to work outdoors in strong, icy winds or heavy rain, but the weather might damage the goods on sale, blowing or washing away all the profits of the day’s toil. Summer brought different hazards as fresh produce could turn bad on hot days, or attract flies, meaning that unwary customers might buy rancid food. As the country became a nation of shopkeepers, new approaches to retailing were needed.

At the start of the nineteenth century, civic improvement was a cumbersome process. The governance arrangements for towns and villages were not uniform. Some plans needed authorising by an Act of Parliament. It was not always clear who had the authority to initiate proposals and private vested interests could prove a formidable obstacle to progress. In 1822, prosperous Liverpool opened a new indoor market. With its massive cover supported by cast-iron pillars it was an ambitious project. At the centre were an array of stalls, whilst around the perimeter small shops were available for rent.

In 1835, the shambolic administration of local government, which had some of its roots in medieval times, was radically overhauled. Local councils which were elected by ratepayers were to manage the affairs of some boroughs. This brought some clarity to the process of obtaining permission to improve, and raising the necessary funds.

Covered market halls had advantages for all. A permanent indoor pitch helped reputable traders to keep their wares in good condition, minimise wastage and gave some protection from opportunist pilfering. Although the fixed number of stalls and shops for rent would hamper new suppliers from doing business, less competition could benefit customers. Established vendors could focus on providing quality goods, without worrying about being undercut by an itinerant stranger. The market authority could impose rules about cleanliness on tenants, helping to reduce disease. As the century progressed and municipal powers grew, it was straightforward for an inspector to root out bad products, and underweight or adulterated goods, and take enforcement action.

In the decades that followed the reform of local government, town after town mooted the possibility of raising several thousand pounds to create an indoor market. This linked in with current thinking about the role of sanitation and good hygiene in preventing disease, and also manifested the civic pride that abounded in mid-Victorian Britain. Despite that pride, local ratepayers were not necessarily keen on digging deep into their pockets to fund the ambition of their council, but money could also be raised by a public subscription or the formation of a company, another sign of the entrepreneurial spirit of the age.

Some of the market halls that were erected in the second half of the nineteenth century reflected the prosperity that many towns were experiencing as they were much more substantial than a simple covered hall. They were prestige commissions and architects submitted detailed plans in competition with all comers in order to secure the business. As a consequence, designs made a bold statement, rather than simply creating a functional space. The building might be fronted by an arched portico. Its entrance hall might be laid with a tessellated pavement of a rich pattern. It would often be topped by a tower or spire.

Many buildings were multifunctional and several were two storeys high. The ground floor contained stalls and shops whilst the upper one might have private offices, rooms for the mechanics institute or a reading room, reflecting the trend amongst some workers for education and self-improvement. Lichfield’s upper floor housed a corn exchange, whilst Chesterfield had a space for local magistrates. At Bishop Auckland, the market hall was part of a suite of civic buildings including assembly rooms and accommodation for the town hall company and the board of health.

The grandiose exterior of many market buildings was complemented by an elaborate interior. Some had a glass roof, which would help to maximise the available light. Wrought iron was also much used, giving strength and the potential to create elaborate decorative interiors.

While traders who catered for the domestic retail market were no longer at the mercy of the weather, the indoor market was more than a mere change of venue for existing suppliers. Some shops were rented by businesses that would not have operated from an outdoor market stall, such as savings banks. Vaults under the entrance hall to Rugby market were taken by an enterprising wine and spirit merchant. Providing refreshments for shoppers from a cafe in the market hall was an emerging business opportunity.

It was possible to try out a novel idea on a small scale in the market hall. In 1884, Michael Marks opened a market stall in Leeds, with the slogan ‘Don’t ask the price, it’s a penny’. The site of the Penny Bazaar is still marked in Leeds market. Marks himself is remembered as one of the co-founders of the chain store, Marks & Spencer in 1894.

Working and lower-middle class people were the main customers of indoor markets, where most would have valued the wide choice and vibrant atmosphere. Developing in parallel with them were covered shopping arcades that catered for the needs and whims of the more affluent citizen. These were constructed by private landlords, often on land they owned. Early examples include the Burlington Arcade, in London, and developments Bath, Bristol and Glasgow. The early arcades were usually entered from the public street through gates. The shops that lined the sides of the arcade were rented to suppliers who, between them, sold a variety of expensive or exclusive items.

As arcades developed around the country in the second half of the nineteenth century, who the developer saw as the typical customer would have varied from place to place. There would have been much more demand for an ornate or prestigious row of shops in a large town or thriving resort than somewhere that was not particularly prosperous.

Covered markets and arcades were part of the shared experiences of many townsfolk in the twentieth century even though plenty lost their original glory. Maintenance could be prohibitively expensive and developments which had once been at the forefront of good practice fell behind as regulations became more stringent. Those which were part of a suite of buildings probably fared better than free-standing ones as it was more practical to build a replacement on another site and demolish the old.

Some of the old buildings were eventually reborn. Those surviving the devastation of war or disaster benefited from the change of public attitude towards heritage in the mid-twentieth century. Some became listed structures that had to be retained, but as Victorian buildings were frequently very sturdy in construction, it was possible to refurbish and reuse them in line with their original purpose. Small market shops now house the type of goods that our great-great-grandparents could never have imagined. Butchers, fishmongers and costermongers still ply their goods from individual stalls. Whatever the future of shopping, twenty-first century customers can still enjoy a few hours of retail therapy in surroundings similar to their ancestors.