Time Out to Launch First London Food Market in Piccadilly Circus

Time Out is set to open its first food market in its home city of London, at Piccadilly Circus, which the company announced will serve as a global flagship for its food hall portfolio.

The Aim-listed media and hospitality group has secured a 26,400-square-foot site at 55 Regent Street, owned by the Crown Estate. The new market, Time Out Market London, is slated to open in the summer of 2028. The Grade II listed building will feature a curated selection of 15 restaurants, bars, and food businesses.

Plans for the London market were initially announced in 2024, when Time Out raised £8.4 million through a share placing to fund both the London venture and a second market in New York. This development follows a previous attempt to open a 500-seat market in Waterloo, which was abandoned four years prior due to the pandemic. The company had also reportedly considered a location in Spitalfields.

Time Out established its first market in Lisbon in 2014. Since then, the company has expanded its portfolio to include 13 markets across Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Asia, attracting over 12 million visitors annually. Current locations include two in New York, one in Barcelona, and one in Dubai. The company has five additional markets in development in Delhi, Abu Dhabi, Prague, Riyadh, and São Paulo.

The launch in London comes amid increasing competition from other food halls, such as Market Halls, which was founded in 2018 and currently operates four sites in the capital, with plans to expand to ten by 2028. The broader hospitality sector also faces challenges from rising energy and labor costs, which have contributed to restaurant closures.

Chris Ohlund, chief executive of Time Out Group, described securing the Piccadilly Circus site as a significant milestone in the company's nearly 60-year history. He stated that bringing the Time Out Market concept back to London represents both a nod to its origins and a vision for its future growth.