Market Hall, Budapest - built in 1897, the largest market in Budapest Slovakia Western Europe Belgium With the rise of global trade in the 16th century, Antwerp became the largest market town in Europe. Grote Markt (Antwerp) Gare du Midi, Brusells - Sunday market France Paris was one of the first European cities to implement a system of formal, centralised and covered market places. Les Halles, a vast centralised wholesale market, was known to be in existence at least by the 13th century when it was expanded, and was only demolished in 1971 to make way for an underground shopping precinct. The French system of organised, designated central retail markets was extensively studied by architects in London with a view to emulating the system and ultimately eradicating the informal supply of produce via street vendors. Raspail Market, Paris Germany Christkindlesmarkt, Nuremberg, (Christmas market), Germany Markthalle IX, Berlin, Germany - built in 1891 Striezelmarkt Dresden, Germany United Kingdom Background and licensing The majority of retail markets are operated by the public sector and administered by local governments. A small number are operated by private groups or individuals. Traders can be licensed to trade on a single pitch but not at a national level or when trading on private land. This piecemeal licensing system has contributed to declining public confidence in the reputation of markets. A voluntary scheme has been set up by The Market People, backed by the National Association of British Market Authorities (NABMA) to address this problem. It provides consumers with traceability of traders and goods as well as the ability to rate and contact the traders. A MarketPASS is issued to an operator or trader, once they have provided proof of identity, insurance and, where required, a hygiene certificate. A study conducted by the Retail Alliance noted that Britain had 1,124 traditional retail markets, 605 farmers’ markets, 26 wholesale markets and more than 45,700 retail traders and that retail markets had an annual turnover of over £3.5 billion while wholesale markets had turnover of £4.1 billion annually. The data also shows that traditional outdoor street markets continue to dominate the market space, but are in decline. Markets also have significant appeal for tourists and visitors. Some researchers make a distinction between traditional markets and gentrified markets. Traditional markets which are primarily held outdoors on specific days, focus on high volume produce sold with low margins. In the gentrified