Brighton Festival of Shopping

First Shopping Festival Set To Boost Brighton Economy

Festival to celebrate diverse shopping scene – a retailer’s dream!

www.brightonfestivalofshopping.com

1 – 30 April 2010

 

Local retailers join forces this Easter to help boost Brighton’s shopping economy with the city’s first ever shopping bonanza - The Brighton & Hove Festival of Shopping.

 

Kicking off on the 1st April, the Festival will showcase the very best in UK high street fashion and cutting edge boutiques for visitors to the city. Set to lift merchant spirits, the Festival will run until the end of the month and has the support of hundreds of stores from across the city, selling everything from children’s toys to antiques, gadgets and glassware.

 

Brighton’s unique retail offer of diverse, independent shops and well-known brands is a core part of the city’s identity and a vital source of income. Attracting over eight million visitors a year, Brighton’s shopping brings around £407m to the city’s economy annually.

 

Exciting features already planned include:

 

Kid's Egg Trail

Sponsored by Facelift, local school children have painted 30 large eggs, which will be hung on shops throughout the city centre, Churchill Square and Brighton Marina. Visitors will be sent on a hunt to locate the eggs and the chance to win a family weekend break in Brighton.

 

Win A Prize A Day

The Festival has teamed up with great Brighton hotels, attractions, stores and restaurants for a chance for shoppers to win a prize every day, including hotel stays, attraction tickets, gift vouchers, spa treats, meals and an evening at Lucky Voice karaoke with cocktails for 8 people.

 

Special Offers

Stores (and selected restaurants) throughout the area will be offering exclusive discounts throughout April.

 

Street Promotions

Every Saturday during the Festival, we'll have promotional teams at Brighton Station to give people information on the Festival, special offers and to point them in the right direction.

 

For further information and a chance to bag a bargain, please visit the website www.brightonfestivalofshopping.com  which is updated regularly with all the exciting news and forthcoming events.

 

Co-organiser, Soozie Campbell city centre manager, comments: “We are thoroughly excited about the launch of the Brighton Festival of Shopping. It's been a long cold winter and Brighton’s retailers have suffered a lot with the bad weather and recession. But they are now ready to take spring by storm. The residents and businesses of Brighton never stay down for long and our response to one bad season is to take the next one by the horns and shake every ounce of pleasure from it.

 

“From the lifestyle shops of The Lanes to the designer bargains of Brighton Marina; from the retro chic of the North Laine to the big-name stores of Churchill Square, shopping in Brighton & Hove really is retail paradise. Furthermore, with easy access across buses, railways and fast road links; it makes the city both a convenient and affordable alternative shopping destination.”

 

 

- ends -

 

 

Notes to editors:

 

Festival Partners

The festival has been created by four organisations working in partnership to inwardly and outwardly promote a better Brighton & Hove:

Unique Brighton – Brighton BID (Business Improvement District) which incorporates 380 stores in the main shopping areas of North Laine, The Lanes and North Street

Churchill Square – Brighton’s only shopping mall, with anchor stores including Debenhams, Next, Apple, Zara, Habitat and Disney.

Brighton Marina – A leading leisure destination within the South East region and one of the largest purpose-built marinas in Europe. Combining dining, entertainment, art, retail and hospitality, alongside the most popular market events in the city, Brighton Marina is a honeypot area for both residents of East Brighton and inbound visitors to the city.

Brighton Visitor – the city’s only dedicated leisure & tourism publication. Published by local independent creative company Sharp Media Ltd who also lead the annual Brighton & Hove Food and Drink Festival, Brighton Tourism Alliance and a number of other consumer-facing not-for-profit events such as the Kemp Town Village Carnival. Sharp Media also provides creative design and marketing services to national and international brands.

Dukes Lane - One of Brighton's premier shopping destinations featuring high end fashion and beauty brands.

 

Hove Business Association - Hove Business Association is the leading independent support organisation for business in Hove and Portslade. Committed to developing the economic prosperity of the area, members a wide range of businesses including retailers, hotels and restaurants alongside corporate and SMEs. www.hovebusinessassociation.co.uk.

 

 

For further information or images, please contact:

C: Brighton Festival of Fashion Press Team

C: Midnight Communications

T: 01273 666200

E: BFF@midnight.co.uk

Fiona Graves

Events Manager

 

Midnight Communications

On Paper - On Air - Online

01273 666200 / 07762 897183

www.midnight.co.uk

 

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