End of an era: Richmond Night Market to close after 26 years as vendors face uncertain future
‘For some, the market is their entire livelihood,’ said Raymond Cheung, who founded the event to bring the Asian-style market concept to Metro Vancouver
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On summer weekend nights, the air around the Richmond Night Market is filled with the aroma of sizzling food and the sound of vendors calling out to passing crowds.
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Rows of stalls stretch across the 20-acre site, offering everything from skewers and dumplings to bubble tea and sweets, while thousands of people stop to eat, shop and take in the spectacle, which attracts more than one million visitors annually, according to the City of Richmond.
But after more than 26 years as one of Richmond’s biggest attractions, the night market will end operations in September when its lease expires.
Its site, on two waterfront properties next to the Bridgeport Canada Line station, had been part of Jingon International Development Group’s proposed Jingon International Plaza, a 3.4-million-sq.-ft commercial and entertainment complex approved by Richmond city council in 2024. The plans included a hotel, entertainment facilities, and designated space for the night market to continue operating.
But the ambitious project never got off the ground and the property entered foreclosure. A court-ordered sale process is underway, according to legal filings.
Since the night market’s earliest days, Lai Wah Yee and her family have built their lives around the annual tradition, working together at one of its popular food stalls.
Yee, who immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong, still remembers the night market’s humble beginnings in 2000, when 40 vendors set up in the parking lot of Continental Shopping Centre, where she first began selling food from her Po Wah Dim Sum stall.
After several moves, the Richmond Night Market settled at its current location in 2012. It has grown into a bustling seasonal attraction with nearly 250 vendors, stage performances, and, more recently, a zip line — all drawing thousands of visitors each night.
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For Yee, the event has become much more than just a place where she earns a living.
“Every night, seeing a whole family — young and old — happily strolling through the night market together is a sight that brings me great joy. That’s why I’ve kept running my stall all the way until now,” the 69-year-old said through a translator.
Yee and her five children have spent years working side by side, serving up spicy fish balls and pan-fried pork balls to the steady stream of visitors who pass through the venue. Over time, the stall became the family’s main source of income. Now, like many vendors, the Yees are facing an uncertain future.
“For some, the market is their entire livelihood,” said Raymond Cheung, an entrepreneur who founded the event to bring the Asian-style market concept to Metro Vancouver.
“For someone coming from overseas, to start by setting up in a small parking lot to turning into such a large international event, it’s something out of a storybook,” said Cheung, who immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong in 1986.
Cheung said the market’s closure will leave roughly 1,000 people employed by his company out of work, including security and ticketing staff as well as crews who set up stages and booths.
The site where the market operates, which includes Duck Island and several nearby West Road properties, has been caught up in several foreclosure proceedings involving companies tied to Jingon International Development Group’s proposed development. The largest case involves an $85 million loan. Court records show the developer defaulted on the loan, and a B.C. Supreme Court judge has allowed the property to be listed for sale through a court-supervised process being carried out by Colliers International.
The properties are listed for sale at a combined asking price of $127.7 million, according to an online listing. In July, one of the West Road properties was sold for $12.5 million.
“We were looking forward to extending the lease,” Cheung said, adding that the foreclosure proceedings changed the situation.
In an emailed statement, the City of Richmond acknowledged the loss of the night market, saying it “hopes to see it continue to thrive in Richmond, whether at its current site or elsewhere.”
While the city said this week it is willing to work with Cheung to try to find a new location, the owner said re-creating the event would require more than simply securing an empty site.
“To start again to build something of this scale would be very difficult in the current economy,” he said, pointing to rising operating costs, licensing requirements, site layout, traffic planning, and finding a property large enough to accommodate the event.
While the market has operated for about 70 days each year, from May to Thanksgiving, Cheung said his company has to pay rent year-round for the site — roughly $65,000 a month.
“Unless you have a very long-term lease, from an investment point of view, it’s very difficult,” he added.
Richmond’s Chamber of Commerce said the market’s closure marks the end of an important chapter in the city’s tourism industry.
“It’s really heartbreaking to hear that 2026 will be the final year of the Richmond Night Market,” said president Shaena Furlong.
Furlong said the market has become a destination for visitors across Metro Vancouver and from around the world, while giving local entrepreneurs a platform to showcase their businesses and help put Richmond’s Asian food scene on the map.
“The night market leaves behind an amazing legacy, and I think everyone who has been part of it over the years should be very proud of what they’ve built,” she added.
Last week, several Richmond mayoral candidates and city councillors publicly pledged to help save the seasonal attraction if elected. Proposed solutions range from removing licensing red tape to exploring public property options.
For now, Cheung is encouraging people to experience the night market before it closes in six weeks.
“Who could have imagined it would have lasted all this time?” Cheung said. “It’s something of a miracle.”
The market’s last scheduled day of operations is Sunday, Sept. 20.
