Barrow’s Market has welcomed another new business as two young entrepreneurs opted to take the leap from selling online to running their own stall.

Reece and Immy’s Toy Stop, opened their stall at Barrow Market in October after running their business from home for the past six months.

Reece MacDonald, 21, and Imogen Marshall, 22, started selling a range of goods online but quickly found that their true passion lay in selling children’s toys. The Toy Stop now sells a range of toys from classic joke shop items, to dolls, puzzles, fidget toys and colouring books to remote control cars, drones and helicopters, kids jewellery and homemade resin keyrings.

Reece, a qualified cleaner, said: “We started selling toys and it really took off. We decided that we wanted to run a shop that would not only be affordable but also have a great range of toys and fun stuff that kids would enjoy.”

Reece added: “We sell a variety of items that we call ‘pocket money’ toys, which are five pounds or less. In the lead up to Christmas we are going to expand on the type of things that we sell so that we are able to cater to more kids and families.”

Barrow’s Market Hall building is currently at the forefront of an exciting scheme to help regenerate the centre of the town thanks to an award of £16 million from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund. The money will be used to transform the property into a brand new destination that has shopping and experiences at its heart in order to attract more people to the town and to encourage them to stay for longer.

The exterior of the building will be given a new look and a shared, accessible entrance created with arts and entertainment venue, The Forum. Improvements will also be made to public areas to the front and rear.

Lee Roberts, Deputy Leader of the Council, said: “We are so pleased to welcome a new trader to Barrow Market and we wish Reece and Immy the best of luck.

“These are challenging times for high streets all over the county and ours is no exception but we can look ahead to positive changes for our town centre. We look forward to seeing proposals for the transformative Levelling Up Fund scheme develop with input and engagement from residents, visitors, businesses and stakeholders over the coming weeks and months.”

Reece and Immy’s Toy Stop was officially opened on Friday 21 October by the Mayor of Barrow, Councillor Hayley Preston.

Cllr Preston said: “It’s really great to see another new business open at Barrow Market.

“We have always said that the market is a great incubator of small and independent businesses, offering the perfect step for anyone wishing to take the leap from operating at home or online to working from a stall of their own. We wish the Toy Stop all the best with their venture.”

Barrow Market is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, from 9am to 5pm. For more information please visit https://www.barrowbc.gov.uk/visitors/shopping/market/ or https://www.facebook.com/BarrowMarketOfficial

For those who are looking to open a stall in the market, please contact Market Manager Jacqui Armstrong on jarmstrong@barrowbc.gov.uk