A MARKET stall is celebrating 100 years of trading in Leigh.

Dave West’s mum gave birth to him and he was delivered into a banana box, 61 years ago, at his family’s market stall, West and Sons, and he has stayed in the fruit and vegetable trade ever since.

The stall has now passed through four generations which was started by Dave’s grandad Wilf West, who wheeled his cart from Tyldesley to Leigh every day to trade outside the bus station.

Dave said: “We have a great relationship with our customers which isn’t something you get in supermarkets.

"We understand people; we know what they want and we deliver it. We have a great reputation with the community.

"We’ve been trading a very long time and although market culture has changed, we have brought the old-school values through to the current day.

"I hand-pick products at the wholesalers so our customers know they are receiving quality stuff – it’s not mass produced or delivered to us.”

After Wilf West died from a heart attack aged 44, his wife Margaret took over the stall before her sons Arnold and Desmond, Dave’s dad, worked there. Arnold later took over a second stall in Chorley.

Dave has been helping at the market since being a young child before working there full time when he left school.

He took charge of the stall when his dad retired and later opened a second stall in the market called Top Banana.

Although Dave is still very active with the Leigh Market stall, the day-to-day running of the business has been left to his son, Jack and his daughter Georgina.

Dave added: “I’m keen for Jack to continue the legacy of the stall. All my kids have had involvement in the markets throughout their lives.

"They know what they’re doing and I know Jack will do a great job.”

Leigh Market is located in the town centre between Bradshawgate and Spinning Gate Shopping Centre.

Wigan Council leader Cllr David Molyneux added: “Leigh market is a vibrant, engaging and welcoming place where traders are more than happy to build a relationship with customers.

“Stories like Dave’s are fantastic and will be of interest to the public as some people will have been coming to West & Sons for years.

“Dave is clearly really passionate about his family business and it’s great that he’s still so involved.

"We hope they continue trading for many more years and pass through further generations.”