The Barras: Glasgow's changing traditions
- Lola Lea
- Jul 26
- 6 min read
This article was written as part of a series exploring Glasgow's changing working-class culture. The full collection can be found here: https://www.glasgow-culture.com/
The Barras has been an institution of Glasgow’s East End since 1921. Founded by Maggie McIver, the market has built a community based upon trading, tea and a natter.
Over the years, the Barras has provided an environment for those in the area to buy and sell goods, it has brought locals together and played a crucial role in helping the Glaswegian working-class to earn a living. The McIver legacy still lives on in the markets, but the landscape has slowly but surely changed.
Currently, the council plans to invest £27 million in improvements to the area, stating: “The Collegelands Calton Barras (CCB) project area suffers from high levels of multiple deprivation that are attributed to a lack of local job opportunities, physical barriers that prevent easy access to city centre and high levels of vacant and derelict land.”
The proposed changes have the potential to both benefit and hinder the area. These plans aim to put the Barras at the centre of the neighbourhood, which would further improve footfall to the markets, but rejuvenation can often threaten tradition.
While the Barras was traditionally a place focused solely on trade, there has been an increase in artists and crafters selling at stalls, and the Barras now provides a home for people to start small businesses selling handmade goods.
Alan of Cosmic Creepers Tie Dye began his stall selling tie-dyed clothes five years ago, and he later opened a separate DIY tie-dye bar in the Barras. He eventually moved to a larger stall, where he combined the two into one space, which even boasts plumbed-in water, a luxury in the markets.
Alan said: “Previously, people just used to buy and sell, if you got a good deal on something you could sell it on, whereas now with the regeneration of the Barras, there are a lot of people making what they’re selling.
“A lot of people are putting time and effort into hand making clothing, hand making jewellery, so with that ethos it does change how the market works, because a lot of people aren’t just buying and selling anymore, it’s more of an artist’s commune where we can all come and work together and that’s created really interesting collaborations.”
The Barras is not the only space in Glasgow seeing this type of transformation. From pubs to venues, places which have traditionally been dedicated spaces for working-class Scots are beginning to welcome in new faces from different backgrounds.
For the more traditional sellers who have been in the Barras for longer, change can come as a welcome refresher.
Eddie from Eddie’s Antiques said: “The community’s started to come back down, there’s a lot of mixed people now, and everybody’s enjoying it, it’s a good place for families to come down”
Eddie has been selling in the markets for over a decade, and while he has found the changes taking place to have had a positive impact on the markets, he still finds it important to ensure that the space is protected for those who have made their living in the markets for generations.
He said: “It would be nice to bring kids down to see what it was like at the Barras, 30, 40 years ago.”
“It’s good for you to get changes, but it’s nice to have the older side of Glasgow, keep the Barras going, and anything else is a bonus.”
Some sellers are open to the new kids in town, but inevitably, there has been a little resistance to change.
Leyna Rafferty of Violet Vintage said: “There are so many independent small businesses here now, there are so many artists, and there are sellers who’ve been here for 30, 40 years. It’s a really unique place, there’s nowhere else like it.
“At the same time, you’ve got to have a bit of a thick skin because there are sellers who’ve been here for so long, and they’ve carried on the culture from then.”
Leyna began her stall three years ago, just as the Barras was starting to see an increase in customers again. She now shares a space with Jenny Honnan of Pure Barkin’, who has been at the Barras for the past five years.
The community is one of the parts of the Barras that will never change. The name originally came from “the barrows”, as items were originally sold out of hand carts due to the limited infrastructure for sellers when the Barras first opened. A strong community found its roots here, huddled together around the barrows on weekend mornings, and while the space has changed, the convivial spirit remains.
Alan said: “The community’s great, it’s one of those things you always hear about, but until you’re a part of it, you don’t realise just how special it is. It’s a weird group of people who might not have ever met each other but always look out for each other.
“We’ve got our pals who make us cups of tea and always make sure we’ve got something to eat, and we’ve had breakfast. The community is something that’s never changed about the Barras, as much as the Barras has changed, it ebbs and flows, the community and the sense of working together and belonging have always been there.”
There's a preconception that many, especially those new to Glasgow, hold of the East End being intimidating and dangerous. Even the council stated: “The decline of the Barras market as a retail destination and visitor attraction has led to illicit trading and anti-social behaviour in the area.”
Alan said: “I think people tend to shy away from the East End because they think it's going to be rough, so when they come down to the Barras and they see that it's so vibrant and it’s so full of life again, I think that’s going to bring more people down.”
While it is true that you’d struggle to spend a day making your way through the labyrinthine stalls without being approached by the odd individual asking if you’re interested in an item of dubious origins, this shouldn’t be considered indicative of the general atmosphere in the area.
With a criminal history that includes notorious serial killer Bible John and a reputation of high crime rates and drug consumption, those who have never been to the area could be understandably put off. However, what better recipe is there for a perfect Sunday than a sunny morning spent perusing records, clothes and crafts, followed by an array of lunch options from whelks to hotpots, and finished off with a rooftop pint?
The markets still contain the legacy of their beginnings, with vendors on site claiming direct descent from Maggie McIver, “the Barras nepo-babies”, as they were fondly referred to. Wandering around the stalls, you’ll find boards detailing the history of the space and testimonies from those who have grown up in the area.
Alan said: “It’s been going so long that I think it could only ever keep going, I don’t think people would ever let the Barras shut down”
Speaking on the importance of the markets to their business, Leyna of Violet Vintage said: “There’s nowhere else that’s like this, that actually gives small businesses an opportunity to sell their stuff and make money.”
“It’s so important for normal people to be able to make money, especially in a cost-of-living crisis, it’s integral, people pay their bills by having shops here, people look after their families by having shops here.”
In this sense, defining the modern working class is not an easy task. While sellers have been here for generations, relying on the older model of trading to support themselves, the landscape is now changing. Having a space to develop a small business plays an equally crucial role for younger generations moving into the Barras to support themselves.
It would be remiss to imply that changes such as those taking place at the Barras are always positive. Spend one night in a pub in Govanhill and you’re bound to come across someone telling you that, after generations of their family living in the area, they’ve been pushed out due to rent rises following gentrification.
However, without the significant changes in the community at the Barras over the past decade, the markets would have been in trouble. Several sellers refer to a quiet period when there were few customers, but the recent rejuvenation has given both old and new hope for the future.
Eddie from Eddie’s Antiques said: “There’s a lot of people who don’t know about the Barras, but I think it’s going to take off.
“I think it’s going to have a good future. I think within the next five years this is going to become even bigger than what it is now”
The consensus at the Barras seems to be that while there may be the odd jibe made at a new trendy stall opening, the new groups coming to the Barras to browse bolo ties are bound to come away with an antique or two from the sellers who set up shop decades ago.
As Alan said: “No matter what’s happened in society, it’s always been a place for misfits, so when everything’s a bit chaotic, there’s still normality within the Barras.”
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