Markets back in city's heart

The Bull Ring then...

Love it or loathe it, you couldn't ignore Birmingham's dusty old Bull Ring shopping centre.

The concrete sprawl had become a symbol of what went wrong with British architecture in the 1960s.

But now it has been given a

...and now

much-needed facelift, during which the area became one of Europe's biggest building sites.

New glamorous stores such as Selfridge's and Debenhams are at the forefront of the revamp, with flamboyant architecture and stylish displays.

The shopping centre - now slightly renamed Bullring - houses nearly 150 retailers, nearly 60 of them new to the city.

Great news for shoppers, but not everyone has been pleased to see the new development.

Fall in trade

The Bull Ring site, just beneath St Martin's Church, has always been the city's historic market centre. It began life way back in 1166.

The markets have traded for centuries

But the market traders have had to contend with a fall in trade because shoppers kept away from the construction site.

The redevelopment has seen the creation of three separate markets - the outdoor, the rag market and an indoor market with 700 stalls.

The signs of success are already there. In its first couple of weeks, more than two million people visited the site.

A LOAD OF BULL It took nine months to demolish the old Bull Ring The new shopping centre has created 8,000 jobs There are more than 140 shops and kiosks It has 3,100 new parking spaces

"We've had three years' hard experience and in fact, 15 years of negotiation," says stallholder Dave Everett.

"We were all on tenterhooks up till three weeks ago when it opened.

"Tradewise, we're in a honeymoon period. We're looking forward to a situation where we will receive some of the benefit from the customers this centre draws into the city."

Easier access

Fruit and veg trader Carl Spiegel says access to the markets is now much easier, and he hopes that will increase business.

Talking to people affected by the redevelopment, it soon becomes clear how important it was to achieve a high degree of communication and co-operation.

Dave Everett: Sceptical

Few people were more sceptical than Dave Everett.

"A lot of the answers have been put forward and argued by the market traders themselves, on the principle of 'We know the city - work with us.'

"Over the 15 years, I've been very critical but with our input, the local shopkeepers, the local people, I think we've got a success on our hands."

Regeneration is a real buzzword in Birmingham, as it strives to compete with hugely successful retail centres in surrounding areas.

About £7bn of new investment is said to be heading Birmingham's way, and the Bull Ring has seen more than £500m of that so far.

It's hoped the full impact will be felt as more consumer cash flows into the city's coffers.

But there are more tangible benefits - for the first time in 40 years, St Martin's Church is once more clearly visible from the central shopping area.