As someone who sits on the edge of New Covent Garden Market every day of my working life, I quite literally have a close interest in the redevelopment of the site.
Our office block - or at least our tiny part of it - is connected directly to the flower market, which one can only presume will not be the case once the redevelopment begins to take shape.
The Nine Elms fruit and vegetable trading section has not fallen into the same state of disrepair as some other UK markets built in the same era. But sadly, the same cannot be said for the flower market, which is a crying shame for the UK’s premier wholesale trading space for some of the most attractive and evocative products anyone could sell or buy.
The flower market is in dire need of a pick-me-up, with two sizeable tenants closing their doors in the last couple of months, and others struggling to deal with the economic downturn that has seen floral luxuries scratched off many a corporate and private shopping list.
I certainly hope the restructure brings flowers and produce together in a far more inclusive way. For one thing, that would give the market authority and tenants greater scope to build on some of the excellent promotional and PR activity they have undertaken in recent months.
It would also strengthen the market’s claim as a one-stop hub for horticultural products in London, which will be crucial as and when the redevelopment comes to fruition.
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