ABSTRACT
Traditional retail markets can function as spaces of sociability and inclusion for diverse groups in the city, yet these benefits are threatened by the advancement of urban neoliberal policies. The body of evidence on the sociability and community benefits of markets for vulnerable and marginalised groups highlights their salience to cities within the context of urban diversity and socio-spatial inequalities associated with modernisation and urban redevelopment. Kirkgate Market is a spectacle of cultural difference, encapsulating public multiculture not reproduced elsewhere in the city centre. A striking feature of market users' social interactions was the range of strategies employed to bridge language differences and proficiencies. Kirkgate Market therefore combines spaces for specific ethnic minorities who are attracted by speciality produce, as well as more general stalls where traders and users from different backgrounds and cultures accommodate each other through various communication strategies.
