Peterborough’s Indie Retailers Group aim to put their unique offering on the map – literally!
They’ve launched a handy new guide so shoppers can really shop local.
The Local Indie Retailers are a group of 30+ retailers, cafes, bars and restaurants that are independently owned across Peterborough city centre.
A diverse mix of businesses, they started working together in January 2013 and came up with the idea for the city centre map. This map project is not about individual businesses, but about the visitors experience within the city centre and about footfall.
The idea behind the city centre map was to show the whole offering of the city centre, so it incorporates food & drink, retail & culture – three sectors that are linked closely together.
Theywanted to show how the three elements combine to make the visitors experience to Peterborough a complete one, whether they are a new visitor choosing to come to Peterborough over another destination or a local person who might not have been into the town centre for some time – So its an insider’s guide to re-discovering your city !
By encouraging independent retail and support for independent retailers they’re starting to tackle the very real issue of declining footfall in our own city centre.
The number of empty shops on British shops hit an all time high this year and the only way to stop that happening is for people to visit them and support them.
Whilst many people do shop for convenience online or at one stop centres, there’s no substitute for great customer service and that sense of community that comes from shopping close to home and this new group is keen to remind people of that.
Independent retail adds character and interest to your shopping experience – The antithesis to this is a clone town where each street in each town holds exactly the same shops, which means that shopping is less of an experience.
Shopping with independents is good news for our local economy. For every £1 spent in an independent shop 50p-70p stays in the local economy. It also circulates up to three or four times – creating local wealth and jobs!
Rachel Parkin of Reba Boutique & Phillip Yau of Janson Hong who were behind the creation of the Peterborough Local Indie Retailers said – “We’ve both been in retail for a number of years, times are definitely changing and life on the high street is no picnic – but by working together we can improve our situation and be a positive contribution to the city. Together we have more of a voice when dealing with issues that affect all of us.”
Annette Joyce, Head of Commercial Operations at Peterborough City Council, said – “The city council is delighted to be supporting the independent retailer’s forum and we are proud to be sponsors of this creative map. The map is an excellent idea and by working in partnership with the forum we want to ensure increasing support to our independent retailers, who make the high street shopping experience both interesting and unique.”
Shops, cafes and restaurants on the map include Janson Hong, Melanie Richards Hair Boutique, El Shoe, Art in the Heart, Reba, Designer Leathers, The Beehive, Barista, Charles Bright Jewellers, Head 2 Head Barbers, The Beautiful Truth, Pkai Hair, Clues, Tahlia’s Closet, The Oculist, Style Accessories, Franks Butchers, The Brewery Tap, The Banyan Tree, Clarkes, & Embe to name just a few!
Local Indie retailers worked in collaboration with Vivacity, the Museum and the Cathedral to create the map which is free and available throughout the city centre, the Visitor Information Centre and from all the retailers involved.
Your local independent retailers offer variety, community, value for money, service and quality!
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