McCashin’s Market Every Saturday This Summer

9 February 2011

Tui have tomato sauce, Macs have Brewbars, Speights have pies but McCashins have a Market.

McCashins Market is held 3pm-7pm every Saturday during summer.

The market features live music, a beer garden, craft and jewellery stalls, art, antiques, bric a brac, olive oil, honey products, clothing, hazelnuts, fresh produce and bread, home made lemonade and hot food stalls. Everything is local.

The market idea grew out of McCashin’s frustration at not being able to get into the iconic Nelson market held at Montgomery Square on Saturdays between 8am and 1pm.

“I had spoken to a number of stallholders at the Saturday market and the common theme is trying for two to three years before they were accepted” Emma McCashin said.

“We decided to run our own market instead and provide another activity for tourists and visitors to the region and somewhere for the locals to come and grab a cheap bite to eat from one for the food stalls and have a cold beer, cider or lemonade in the beer garden while listening to the live music.”

“The later time slot suits a lot of locals, particularly if they work on Saturdays or have Saturday morning sport. Sometimes you have the best intentions of heading down to the Nelson market but it’s 2pm before you get out the door. This gives people a second chance to get their fresh produce and coffee hit for the day or for visitors to the region to sample what Nelson has to offer.”

“There are lots of stallholders out there who can’t get into the Saturday market and it’s a great opportunity for them. People often comment about all the craft industry in Nelson and I believe that this is in part due to the markets providing people with the opportunity to get their products in front of the consumer.”

The Nelson market operates on Saturday and Sunday mornings 8am-1pm in the Montgomery Car Park. Motueka hosts a Sunday market and Takaka and Golden Bay has a Saturday market. The Richmond Baptist Church has a market on the fourth Saturday of each month and the Stoke Church has one on the third Saturday. Other small markets are held at different times throughout the region.

The market is proving to be very popular, with locals heading down to enjoy the atmosphere in the beer garden each Saturday. “Plenty of seating including lounge settings, live music, good beer and food stalls seems to be a formula which is working for us.”

McCashin’s Market can be accessed via the Railway Reserve and provides safe and convenient access for biking and walking to the market. The market is with walking distance down the Railway Reserve from the popular Grand Mercure and Honest Lawyer in Monaco.

The Gentle Cycling Company offers a newly launched beer bicycle tour that incorporates visits to local hop farms, McCashin’s Brewery and the Moutere Inn. You can also hire bikes from Nelson Cycle Hire the airport. The Brewery is a ten minute cycle ride form the airport.

McCashin’s Brewery offers Brewery tours six days a week, 11am and 2pm and other times by appointment. Visitors can incorporate a brewery tour at 2pm on Saturday with visiting the market.

If you have an interest in art, the afternoon tours are taken by the Brewery’s resident artist Daniel Campion. Campion’s works are dotted round the brewery and the afternoon tours have a focus on the alchemy of brewing and art.

ENDS

© Scoop Media