We acquire
We buy town-centre buildings and commercial units within wider regeneration schemes, then invest to give them a new civic and commercial life.
Town centre regeneration · Food halls
We turn large spaces in the centre of regeneration areas into thriving food halls and markets.
Commons acquires and/or operates landmark town-centre spaces as independent food halls; taking the risk, building the audience and creating lasting local value.
How we workAcquisitionLong leaseOperation
Our belief
The future of hospitality is a food hall in every town.
We’ve seen first-hand the difference a food hall can make, particularly in secondary town centres. They bring people together, create reasons to visit and give communities somewhere to meet, eat, drink and simply spend time.
We all know hospitality is struggling. Pubs are closing. Food halls are the new centre of town; not just somewhere to grab a bite, but the new social hub of the community.
A place to meet friends, move between independent kitchens and bars, discover something new, and enjoy a variety of experiences under one roof.
Consumer habits are changing. People are looking closer to home for their social lives. They want to stay local, avoid expensive taxis and Ubers, and spend time in places that feel part of their community. They want somewhere affordable to eat and drink, catch up with friends, celebrate birthdays, throw parties or simply spend an afternoon doing nothing at all.
Especially through the colder months, food halls offer something traditional high streets often lack: a warm, welcoming space where people can come together, move between different food and drink experiences, and spend time in the heart of their town.
And this isn’t just for major city centres. We believe secondary towns deserve the same energy, choice and investment. Local communities deserve places worth staying local for.
Commons exists to prove it.
A specialist operating partner
The certainty to bring difficult space back into use.
Food halls are well known as incubators for town centre and area regeneration, but they need more than a fit-out and a collection of traders.
Commons either acquires the building from councils and developers, or takes long leases on them to bring the building to life.
We take a long lease
Through concession agreements and leases of 15 years or more, we become the committed operator your scheme needs.
Live projectDenton, Greater Manchester
Proof in place
Hatters Food & Drink Hall
Our first food hall brought four independent kitchens and two bars together in the heart of Denton, creating a vibrant new destination for people to eat, drink, meet and connect.
Having acquired the distressed building at auction, we worked closely with the local authority and planning department to secure planning permission in just six weeks, before transforming the space and completing the build in only eight months.
The impact was immediate. Within our first three months of opening, we welcomed over 40,000 visitors to the area and generated more than £750,000 in local economic activity, bringing new footfall, investment and energy into the town centre.
Our commitment to creating something meaningful for the community was recognised when we were awarded Best New Business, celebrating not only the success of the venue but the wider impact of our vision for Denton.
For us, this was about more than opening a food hall. It was about breathing new life into a town-centre building, supporting independent businesses and creating a destination that the local community could be proud of.
Visit Hatters40,000visitors in the first three months
Under construction
Incubator pods at the brand new Ashton Markets.
Under constructionAshton-under-Lyne, Tameside
Commons has taken on stalls in the brand new Ashton Markets — a £14 million redevelopment bringing a landmark covered market back to the heart of Ashton-under-Lyne.
Our trading pods sit beneath the market's striking new timber canopy, and we're using them the way food halls always have: as incubators.
Every four to six months, a brand new food or drink business takes over a pod — testing its menu, building a following and learning to trade at real volume, with our team behind it. The ones that thrive graduate into a full Commons food hall, ready to hold their own among established operators.
£14mAshton Markets redevelopment scheme
4–6 monthsIncubator residencies for new businesses
The opportunity
Have a space that needs a reason to exist?
01
Prominent town-centre location
02
A large commercial unit or landmark building
03
Part of an active regeneration programme
04
Available to acquire or lease for 15+ years
Councils · Developers · Asset owners
Let’s put the heart back into your town centre.
jb@commons.coTell us about the building, the town and the wider ambition. We’ll tell you plainly if Commons is the right fit.