The Grade II listed building was built by Great Western Company in 1876-77 to span a tunnel for the railway line between Moor St and Snow Hill. Sadly, the beautiful building sustained bomb damage in World War 2 and is now two floors shorter.
The arcade has been hosting regular markets for arts and crafts as well as playing host to eight artists over two weekends, as part of Birmingham Open Studios - an annual, city-wide art trail.
This year, the arcade is acting as one of this year’s main ‘hubs’ where several artists exhibit their work together.
The arcade has been hosting regular markets for arts and crafts as well as playing host to eight artists over two weekends, as part of Birmingham Open Studios - an annual, city-wide art trail.
This year, the arcade is acting as one of this year’s main ‘hubs’ where several artists exhibit their work together.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 My name is Bogláka Tóth, I'm a Hungarian artist and I live in Birmingham.
00:07 And me and my friend Gabriela Gavin, who is in the background, she's just setting up for a workshop.
00:14 We've been here in the Great Western Arcade this week, as part of the Birmingham Open Studios, which was last weekend and this weekend, coming up.
00:25 And yeah, it's been a really amazing opportunity for us just to put our artworks out there.
00:33 In the beginning of my career, really, professional career, Gabi is more of an established artist and we were able to participate in the Open Studios
00:45 and then keep the unit open for a really fair price, so yeah, we feel very supported by the Arcade.
00:53 Hi, I'm Paul Froxon, I'm the owner of the Great Western Arcade. We've been selling shoes in the Great Western Arcade for nearly 25 years.
01:03 It's a really nice community, lots of independent retailers and it's a beautiful environment.
01:10 Hi, my name is Lulu and I'm the retail team leader at Miss Macaroon.
01:15 I've been here for about 18 months. Miss Macaroon is a social enterprise company that helps young adults that have barriers into getting into employment.
01:26 We help them with their CVs, with training in the kitchens, with retail experience and we help them with a five year plan to get into employment.
01:38 So we've been at the Great Western Arcade for over 10 years now and it's a lovely, unique arcade with lots of quirky businesses
01:48 which is a real joy to see in this day and age where everything looks very corporate and very samey.
01:55 So it's a fantastic place for lots of unusual little goods and there are other social enterprise companies in here as well.
02:06 Being independent means you probably buy less, so those inflationary pressures are higher.
02:15 The big companies can buy in bulk so they can keep their prices at the old price for longer.
02:21 So that seems to have settled now because my job is to make sure everything is lower than online and my competitors.
02:29 But also what I do is I offer advice so you have to make yourself stand out.
02:36 My job is to get people the right product at the best price and with the right advice.
02:42 So sometimes I say no to certain products because I don't feel they need it but I'll explain to customers.
02:48 So it's offering that special service which differentiates you to online.
02:54 My philosophy here is just to basically break even. As long as I pay the bills, I'm happy.
03:04 Welcome to Lurkey. We are a wine store and wine bar.
03:10 We have been in the Great Western Arcade for 10 years and we offer wines by the glass as well as a huge selection of wines.
03:18 So there is a wine for everyone and a glass of wine for everyone as well as cocktails and draft beers.
03:23 What we love about being here in the Great Western Arcade is that it is a very historical part of Birmingham and as well that there is a community of independence.