Waverley Market (formerly also known as Waverley Shopping Centre, Princes Mall, and Waverley Mall) is a shopping centre in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland.

The old Waverley Market

The old Waverley Market occupied the same site as the current shopping centre. The location is in the city centre, on a plot bordered by

Waverley Bridge Waverley Bridge is a road bridge in Edinburgh linking Market Street in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town with Princes Street in the New Town, Edinburgh, New Town. The bridge forms part of the roof of Edinburgh Waverley railway station, Edinburgh ...

Princes Street Princes Street ( gd, Sràid nam Prionnsan) is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland and the main shopping street in the capital. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1.2 km (three ...

, the

Balmoral Hotel The Balmoral Hotel, originally built as the North British (Railway Station) Hotel, is a luxury hotel and landmark in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located in the heart of the city at the east end of Princes Street, the main shopping street beneath ...

and

Edinburgh Waverley railway station Edinburgh Waverley railway station (also known simply as Waverley; gd, Waverley Dhùn Èideann) is the principal railway station serving Edinburgh, Scotland. It is the second busiest station in Scotland, after Glasgow Central. It is the north ...

. Before construction of the railways in Edinburgh, a fruit and vegetable market was located under North Bridge. When the present Waverley station was constructed, this fruit and vegetable market was moved to what is now Waverley Market in 1869. By then the market primarily traded in fruit, vegetables and flowers. The market was roofed in 1874 by

Hanna, Donald & Wilson Hanna, Donald and Wilson were a Scottish engineering and shipbuilding firm which flourished in the Victorian era. Reid & Hanna The general engineering firm of Reid & Hanna was founded in 1816 in Paisley, Scotland. Paisley had become an impor ...

. The iron and steel roof was built up till street level. It hosted a roof garden, and was very suitable to all kinds of entertainment. In the 1950s most of the vegetable traders moved to warehouses in Market Street. The lower level of Waverley Market then came in heavy use for fairs, circuses, menageries, exhibitions, etc. By the early 1970s, however, the roof garden was no longer maintained. In 1973 Waverley Market and its roof were demolished.

Shopping centre

The shopping centre succeeded the previous market building. It was once home to mainly independent retailers, but now, though local shops are still prevalent, the mall houses high street chain stores, as well as a large food court. Designed in the early 1980s, the shopping centre was built with its roof at the street level of Princes Street, with a landscaped plaza at that level, in order to preserve the view from Princes Street across to

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

and the

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

. It opened as Waverley Market in November 1984, the name referencing the food market that once occupied the site. An official opening by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

took place on 25 July 1985. In the centre's early years the atria were adorned by luxuriant planting and water features, with shoppers descending on escalators from Princes Street through a canopy of trees to the underground plaza. Major refurbishment in the early 1990s coincided with a change of name to Waverley Shopping Centre. A prominent and popular aspect of the mall introduced at this time was the large water feature which dominated the main atrium and incorporated the 11 ft high Herons Dream sculpture. This was removed during refurbishment in the early 2000s when the centre adopted the name 'Princes Mall'. The mall suffered a decline in popularity in the early 2000s with 12 of the retail units empty at one stage. Major new lettings to fashion retailers may indicate the reversal of this decline, helped by the improvements carried out by

Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...

to the Waverley Steps access to Waverley Station by the installation of new stairs and escalators, with a glazed roof, and lifts. In March 2016, following a £4 million renovation, the shopping centre, was officially reopened, rebranded 'Waverley Mall'. The shopping centre is currently owned by Tradehold, and it reverted to its original name, Waverley Market in September 2021. Edinburgh City Council has given approval for a further redevelopment, which will see the rooftop area being developed, adding 3,000 square metres to the existing 8,000 square metres.

References

External links

Waverley Market website
{{coord, 55, 57, 10, N, 3, 11, 30, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Shopping centres in Edinburgh 1984 establishments in Scotland Shopping malls established in 1984