A MARKET operator who is close to agreeing a deal with Chepstow Racecourse for a car boot sale and flea market every Sunday from August 30, says the “sky is the limit” for traders in the town.

Bob Newby, who ran a popular market at Hempsted Meadows in Gloucester for six years until it was redeployed as a coronavirus testing centre, is now close to agreeing a deal with the racecourse - who he says are “very eager” for the deal to happen.

Mr Newby, who also operates markets Ross-on-Wye and Coleford, has denied reports the Chepstow market will be temporary until a new home becomes available in Gloucester, saying the Chepstow site could be even better than Gloucester’s.

If a deal is struck, the market will be at the main car park at the racecourse.

“I’ve been to see the site at the racecourse and it’s wonderful and much bigger than what we’re used to," Mr Newby said.

“We are hoping to be in Chepstow permanently now, and hope people will make the journey from Gloucester too.

"They had a market at the racecourse and it oddly seemed to end with no-one really knowing why, so the directors at the racecourse seemed very eager to get something going again.”

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At the site in Gloucester, Mr Newby would regularly get 170 traders every Sunday, and the response to the plans on social media has been largely positive.

“It’s been an encouraging response, and I think car boot sales will see a bit of a renaissance after lockdown, with people a little more careful with their money,” he added.

Some Chepstow residents have questioned the safety of the market during the pandemic, to which Mr Newby explained: “I don’t see that being a problem. It’s a big site and social distancing will be easy.

“I’m surprised how well behaved people have been in Ross and Coleford, and I’m sure Chepstow will be no different.”

Chepstow Racecourse has said a contract is yet to be signed, and say they will comment on the plans in due course.

A separate application will also be put to Monmouthshire County Council (MCC) for a change of use to the car park.

Cllr Bob Greenland, Deputy Leader of MCC, said: “Monmouthshire is increasingly being recognised as not only a county of outstanding countryside with welcoming market towns but it is so well placed geographically that many organisations are seeking to come here.

“Chepstow Racecourse is in a superb setting and I have every confidence its management will ensure that visitors can safely enjoy the Gloucestershire Flea Market whilst maintaining the necessary precautions in these current circumstances.”