Carlisle's Teenage Market has already sold out of stalls within just 24 hours of the December event being announced.

The market is organised in partnership between Cumberland Council and The Lanes Shopping Centre. It has been scheduled for December 2, coinciding with this year’s Small Business Saturday.

Last year, 44,000 visited the centre on the same weekend.

The market will also complement the Carlisle Christmas Market which is being held in the city centre between December 1- December 17.

The Teenage Market isn't just about trading stalls—it's a hotbed of enterprising talent.

The event provides an opportunity for young people between ages eight and 25 to gain hands-on experience in creating, selling, and promoting their self-made products.

Young performers can also bask in the limelight with different live performance opportunities available throughout the day.

And while stalls have sold out, there are plenty of opportunities still available for singers, dancers, actors, musicians and comedians.

Councillor Anne Quilter, Executive Member for Vibrant and Healthy Places at Cumberland Council said: “We are delighted that the Teenage Market is going from strength to strength within Carlisle and that it is continuing to attract young traders from across Cumberland.

“We are pleased to be working with The Lanes Shopping Centre on this event and thank them for providing our young people with the opportunity to trade within a different retail environment, I am sure that our young entrepreneurs will really enjoy this experience.

“I am sure that there will be some fantastic Christmas themed items for sale at the market and I hope that as many people as possible support our amazing young people, by buying from these local businesses.”

Susan Young, Manager of The Lanes Shopping Centre, reiterated the sentiment, adding that she believed the event added zest to customers' Christmas shopping experience.

She said: "The Lanes is pleased to be able to offer local young traders the opportunity to sell within an indoor retail environment and we believe that this event will really complement the Christmas shopping experience for our customers.”

The Teenage Market is a nationwide initiative set up by teenage brothers Joe and Tom Barratt, from Stockport, to revitalise town and city centres with the creativity of younger folk.

Co-creator of The Teenage Market, Joe Barratt, said: "Taking part in Teenage Market events not only gives young people across the country the free opportunity to grow their small businesses, but it also helps them develop really important life skills for the future, such as building confidence and better communication."

One of the young traders, Millie Hadden, 17, who hopes to fundraise for a conservation project in Malaysia, will be participating for the second time.

Explaining more about her trip, she said: “Whilst in Malaysia I will learn from local villages about their efforts to reduce the local pet trade of the native sea turtles. I will partake in night patrols along beaches, build hatcheries and monitor the hatchlings from the nests. "I am fundraising all of the money for equipment and trip fees myself so every little helps!

Be sure to visit the Christmas Teenage Market in The Lanes Shopping Centre, on December 2 from 10.30am and 3.30pm.