Update: Chris’ Bazaar ceased trading in Jan 2017
Chris Jones from Helsby says his Bazaar will offer a mix of collectables which he has gathered over the last 20 years and he is looking for anything “interesting or old” to boost his stock. Chris went to college in Handbridge and worked in power stations for 24 years, and after being made redundant he briefly tried coin collecting and trading, but has now decided to open what he calls his “junk shop”. “When I was still working I was into the English crown series , which went for 2 or 3K a coin. I sold all of those at an auction house in London”.
He says that he previously worked with a “wheeler dealer” friend in Frodsham who ran a similar shop. ” I loved it, talking to the old dears, buying and selling. I decided I’d like a place of my own. I looked at Widnes, Ellesmere port market, but Chester was home!”
The stall, situated close to sweet shop has a great range of vintage Lego sets amongst other interesting curios including Roman coins, vintage football programmes, records , medals, die cast cars, postcards, toy soldiers and more.
Chris hopes that the shop will turn out the way, “charity shops used to be 20 years ago, you could find interesting stuff for a couple of quid. I don’t sell on ebay. I want somewhere to come and be a part of the market.” Chris is appealing for stock, with immediate cash payments saying , “If you’re doing a house clearance, you’d have to pay someone £800. Call me and I’ll take anything that looks collectible and give you money for it. I want to fill the shop with paintings, pictures, prints, rugs, bric a brac. A little bit of everything, anything that’s old, unusual or interesting.”
Chris has established good relations with his fellow market traders and says that “Markets are more important than ever. The quality of the food is unbelievable. You got and get a pork pie from the supermarket and cut it in half and its full of fat, you get a pork pie from the cheese man and its actual meat. ” He says that the livelihoods of traders depend on what they sell. “You can talk to them and build a relationship. They can tell you exactly where the food came from. They’ve been here 20-30 years and their parents worked here. Its a good market and prices are very reasonable. I genuinely believe that there should be a place for the market, people need it..not everyone can go to Marks or Waitrose, people can come here and get quality good at a reasonable price. There needs to be a market in Chester..”
Chris’ Bazaar is open Monday- Saturday, shop A11 Chester Market
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The Chester blog 