The former Shoprite supermarket in Chester Street will host Easter food and craft markets on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 April.

Douglas town centre manager Oliver Cheshire with the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture's Farjana Jaigirdar , extreme left, and the Department of Infrastructure's Rebecca Lace...and the Easter bunny

Organised by Douglas Town Centre Management the event builds on the success of Christmas markets held in the store last year.

Douglas Town Centre Manager Oliver Cheshire said: ‘We are grateful to the Department of Infrastructure for allowing us to use the building again. The Christmas markets we held there proved a great success and although the Easter markets will be in mid-April, there’s no guarantee of fine weather of course, so shoppers will be able to browse and shop in comfort over the two days…and meet our very own Easter bunny.

‘The format will be largely similar to last December’s, with a continental feel to the craft and produce stalls and there’ll be opportunities to sample hot food from cuisines from around the world.

‘There will, though, be one exciting new addition. We’re giving eagle-eyed shoppers a chance to win some great prizes. Over the two days of the markets there’ll be envelopes hidden in some of the shops around the town centre entitling the finder to a prize. All you have to do then is to bring the envelope to Douglas Town Centre Management’s information point in the Chester Street store to claim your prize.

Mr Cheshire added: ‘As with all our initiatives our aim is not only to create a memorable “Douglas experience” but also to support local retailers and suppliers as well as the government’s “Think Local. Buy Local” campaign, which aims to promote the economic benefits of shopping locally, as it has been calculated that every £1 spent on local produce in the Isle of Man is worth £1.83 to the Manx economy.’