Derby City Lab attracts over 10,000 visitors in first month at Market Hall

Derby City Lab has welcomed more than 10,000 visitors since launching inside the newly restored Derby Market Hall a month ago.

The lab, which is situated inside a ground level unit inside the historic building, achieved the landmark last week following a group visit by T Level Management and Administration students from Derby College Group.

Derby City Lab initially launched in St James Street two years ago, before moving into the Derbion shopping centre last year.

During that time, it attracted 20,000 visitors – but now it has already achieved half that number in just a single month at Derby Market Hall.

Adam Rodgers, inward investment executive at Marketing Derby and Derby City Lab lead, said: “We’ve been bowled over by the number of people who have visited the lab since it relocated from Derbion to Derby Market Hall.

“From day one, people have been flocking into the lab to learn more about the city’s regeneration story.

“Our aim is to engage and inform as many people as possible about the positive things that are happening right now in our city – and in our new Market Hall location, we are doing just that.”

The aim of Derby City Lab is to engage the public in the city’s future – informing them of the latest developments in the city centre – and gathering their feedback, thoughts and ideas on how Derby can be made better.

The first edition of the lab opened in St James’s Street in 2023, with the backing of a private/public partnership involving Marketing Derby, Derby City Council, the University of Derby, Lathams and Clowes Developments.

Then, in March last year, with the support of Derbion, the lab moved to a unit on Level 2 of the centre.

The lab then had the opportunity to move back into the city centre’s regeneration heartland by taking space at the Market Hall, which opened to the public on Saturday 24 May.

The centrepiece of the lab is the Derby City Model – a detailed 3D model of Derby city centre, which aims to help visitors visualise the city’s ongoing regeneration story.

It also includes the City Living Room, the 300 years of innovation timeline and the University of Derby’s DUST showcase.

There is also a new specially commissioned touch screen kiosk created by Hardy Signs, which features an interactive development pipeline.

Derby City Lab is open seven days a week – from 8am to 3pm Monday to Wednesday, 8am to 5pm Thursday to Saturday and 11am to 3pm on Sundays.

To plan your visit, go to https://derbycitylab.com/.