WHAT a fifth birthday present for Dominic Fairbrother.
With the help of his mum and dad Dominic entered our Find the Fruit competition during the Making Markets Matter campaign at Long Eaton market — and won the single prize of £101 cash.
Dominic was particularly lucky because hundreds entered the competition, which involved walking round the market and finding five fruits hidden (but not very well) on the stalls.
And it was his entry that was drawn out at the end of the day from the many correct entries submitted.
Find the Fruit was just part of the fun of the day. Our prize voucher vault was busy as youngsters queued all day to win a prize by grabbing as many vouchers as possible.
And Past President Eric Tweed kept the crowds amused with his Shopping Basket Challenge, where he gives shoppers the supermarket price of goods, and asks them guess how much they would be on the market.
Whilst most of the activity was in the old Market Place, about 100 yards from the present market site, the whole object was to encourage town centre shoppers to visit the market.
There are plans to move it into the main pedestrianised high street, but since 1973 it was been tucked just a little bit too far away behind the main shopping drag.
But the prize collection stall and the ever-popular free face painting boosted shopper numbers.
At the end of the day the verdict of many of the shoppers was that the MMM campaign had increased footfall.
Local MP Liz Blackman visited the event and even had a go at the prize vault. Afterwards she and NMTF National President Faye Quigley walked round the market chatting to traders.
Another visitor was Erewash Borough Council leader Chris Corbett, who pledged his support for the market and its traders.