Queen Victoria Market traders say they have no confidence in management more than 18 months after a historic strike and amid an executive exodus at the operator of the Melbourne icon.
Relations between the traders and managers at Queen Victoria Market Pty Ltd, which runs the heritage-listed site, have been worsening for years.
An interim report into governance of the market, published by KordaMentha and considered by the City of Melbourne at its September 29 meeting, noted “low trust and insecurity” were key themes reported by traders.
“Phrases which have echoed persistently in consultation have been ‘disrespect’ and ‘lack of understanding’,” the report read.
Chief executive of four years Matt Elliott and Jane Fenton, who served for seven years as chair of the 14-member board, have resigned.
Fenton will be replaced by Judith Swales, current chair of Super Retail Group.
Senior legal counsel Jeffrey Tan and chief of operations Desmond Dobbyn have also resigned.
A spokesperson for QVM told The Age Elliott and Fenton were not departing as a result of the KordaMentha review and “both [exits] relate to the end of set terms”. The spokesperson said Tan and Dobbyn had both decided to move on.
Friends of the Queen Victoria Market members said the closure of Peel Street and Franklin Street entry and exit points to the open-air carpark has forced traffic to enter via Queen Street – creating a bottleneck and lengthy traffic queues.
“We are the market. We traders know what it means,” said Rosa Ansaldo, who has operated Rospaul Fresh Fruit for more than three decades.
“We need people to want to come here every week. But if you can’t find a park, or you have to pay a ridiculous amount for a park, that’s a loaf of bread and a litre of milk,” she said.
Traders have also been told they must vacate southern storage sheds (used to store perishable food items as well as non-perishables) in Franklin Street by January 15, according to emails seen by The Age.
Stallholders were encouraged to use underground storage at the new traders shed, but there are leaks affecting the site. Speaking anonymously to detail sensitive information, a market source said traders might be left without suitable storage at the height of summer.
Queen Victoria Market used to cover the cost of utilities, waste collection and rubbish disposal, but in 2024 passed those costs on to traders. The waste charges were suspended for a year after trader anger, but came into force in early 2025.
That is despite stallholders coming up with sustainability ideas to reduce waste charges, including supplying green waste to farmers and recycling pallets.
“We need an honest working management. We pay our water, our electricity, our waste, our security. Every year it goes up 4 per cent. They want us to pay again, [for] waste that we don’t even have,” Ansaldo said.
“I’ve been here for 38 years. I have never seen it as bad as what it is now.”
She decried the market’s renewal project, which has so far restored 10 out of 12 historic sheds since 2020. “The whole renewal has destroyed us. They didn’t consult with us and do what is best for us,” she said.
Plastic skylights have been extended in the sheds as part of the renewal, making it hotter and increasing glare for workers, Ansaldo said. “It kills the fruit,” she said.
As well as shed upgrades, the Food Hall has been refurbished and a mixed-use hospitality, housing and community services centre in the Munro development – which offers 500 car parks – is complete.
Francesco Fontana of fresh produce store Fontana Brothers said everything was “going sideways” with the renewal project.
“There are some merits [to the renewal], but now it’s become an excuse. Why is the market so quiet? It’s the redevelopment phase,” he said.
Fontana does not mince his words when asked if he has confidence in the market’s management company. “They’re incompetent, doing nothing, and taking it easy. They’re on a wage, regardless of how business goes [for traders],” he said.
Fontana was instrumental in organising the historic strike at the market in February 2025 and remains furious about the dispute with management over additional charges for waste management services on top of rent increases.
A spokesperson for Victoria Market welcomed KordaMentha’s interim findings and said the group would keep working on the relationships with traders through the review and beyond.
“When traders tell the review the relationship has become harder, we take that seriously,” the spokesperson said.
Fontana says another strike isn’t off the table.
Meanwhile, traders and nearby residents say there has been no progress on developing the carpark into a green space or construction of three high-rise buildings nearby.
Construction on the three towers was due to begin in 2024 when the project was originally proposed, but Melbourne City Council now says construction is due to start in “mid-2026”. No work has kicked off at the site bounded by Franklin, Queen and Peel streets, according to nearby residents, but the Queen Victoria Market’s website says construction has started.
Under plans for the “Gurrowa Place” project – which is to include a 49-level tower for student accommodation, a 46-level residential apartment block and a 28-level office building – the current market open-air carpark would be converted to a green space. The project is being developed by Lendlease, with the approval of the Melbourne City Council.
Friends of Queen Victoria Market president Mary-Lou Howie said the Queen Victoria Market Renewal project should be a warning about management of public assets. This is “what happens when a major public asset is subjected to a decade of changing plans, delays and incomplete delivery,” she said.
“Around $250 million has been spent, yet the city has not shown that the project has improved the outcomes it was meant to deliver,” Howie said.
“Gurrowa Place shows what’s at stake. The project is wrapped in commercial confidentiality, dressed up with big numbers, and sold as a response to the housing crisis through high-rise apartments,” she said.
“Meanwhile, the market is expected to give up essential infrastructure – the Franklin Street storage sheds and an open-air car park that generates about $4 million a year. The proposed replacement? A pop-up park and a few cafes.”
A City of Melbourne spokesperson said: “The new trader shed will open in the coming months – with four levels of underground, climate-controlled storage and modern facilities to make life easier for traders.”
Lord Mayor Nick Reece said the council, which is the ultimate owner of the market, was delighted to welcome Judith Swales to the chair role.
“The board will now focus on ensuring a smooth leadership transition and building on the market’s success,” he said.
“Queen Victoria Market is one of the best markets in the world and a much-loved Melbourne institution. I look forward to working with the new chair, traders and community to ensure it stays that way.”
The Queen Victoria Market spokesperson said the market was thriving.
“Visitation has grown three years in a row, to 7.9 million last financial year, and more than 500 businesses are getting ready for a busy Christmas,” they said.
“The renewal project is giving those businesses the storage, amenities and facilities they have needed for a long time.”
The spokesperson conceded that “we acknowledge trading through years of construction has been hard on many businesses”.