South Manchester social enterprise Levy Market is a simple yet effective premise, hosting the area’s finest independent traders on a weekly basis -but making a success of ethical business takes a lot of hard work and dedication, with the knock-on effects hugely benefiting the local economy. Their unwavering ethos has seen local businesses thrive, both indirectly by encouraging a community spirit that keeps money in the local economy and directly via its Market Fund, which has shared £15,000 between budding businesses in the M19 postcode. Now six months on from the original allocation of funds, one of its recipients, a not-for-profit named Love Levenshulme, has just completed its debut community pop-up hub during September. This put real faces to the digital body, having launched a new website in June as a resource for the whole community to promote the area to residents and non-residents alike via citizen journalism, acting as a platform for local news while tying together grassroots projects. This is just one of the many opportunities that can continue to flourish through Levy Market’s joined up thinking.

Every Saturday, behind Levenshulme train station, Stockport Road, Levenshulme, Manchester, M19 3AB, 10am – 4pm, FREE, www.levymarket.com

Words:
Ian Pennington
Published on:
Mon 2 Nov 2015