Biers and Bratwurst in… Birmingham?

I hate to use the C word. But walking through the city centre to our Birmingham office, it’s hard not to feel a sense of anticipation at the incoming festive season.

The tree is up. The log cabins are in place. The stage is set for another season of Gluhwein, Weissbier Brezeln and Currywurst.

Now in its 27th year (barring a year off during the pandemic), the Frankfurt Christmas market is a firm fixture in Birmingham’s calendar. Opening tomorrow (1 November) and running until Christmas Eve, it is the largest German Christmas market outside of Germany or Austria, attracting an estimated 5.5 million visitors to the city each year.

Featuring over 100 stalls, the market supports more than 7,000 jobs and provides an annual economic value of around £350 million.

It is located on Victoria Square, directly in front of the Birmingham City Council offices, which in recent times has created an awkward juxtaposition between the austere facade of one of the country’s most beleaguered councils and the carefree festive revelry happening outside. Nevertheless, despite the council’s difficult financial situation, the market’s presence in Birmingham has been safeguarded until 2027 under a five-year deal signed in 2022.

Whether you’re a tree-up-in-November type or a certified Scrooge, it’s hard to argue with the sentiment behind the Frankfurt Christmas Market.

We often work with real estate developers and investors to help maximise their schemes by encouraging footfall, and one of the many tactics we use is to put on unique events and experiences that draw people in from far and wide.

Birmingham’s Christmas market, combined with the big wheel and ice rink in neighbouring Centenary Square, does this on a huge scale. Conceived at a time when internet shopping was only just starting to take the shine off the high street, the market has been a weapon in the city centre’s armoury that, for two months of the year, pulls residents and visitors in for a festive shopping experience that simply can’t be matched online.

In times of economic growth and during recessions, under the reign of eight prime ministers and throughout the catastrophe of Brexit, the market’s presence in Birmingham has served as a reminder of this city’s open mindedness, its welcoming nature, its ability to embrace other cultures and traditions, and its love of a metre-long hot dog.

Yes, it probably is too early to start thinking about Christmas, but as a cultural and economic installation that brings a taste of European outdoor socialising to Birmingham, the Frankfurt Christmas market has my full support.