Shop Aberdeen is set to make a welcome return this spring – and now city retailers are being invited to join the special event aimed at boosting “bricks and mortar” traders.
The weekend event, running for four days from Thursday, April 24, to Sunday April 27, will once again see shops offering unique offers and discounts and even special events to draw customers in.
On its first outing last October, Shop Aberdeen was an instant success both with customers and with the more some 50 city centre businesses who took part in the event, which is staged by Aberdeen Inspired.
Adrian Watson, chief executive of Aberdeen Inspired, said: “We knew within hours of wrapping up our inaugural Shop Aberdeen weekend that we would be bringing it back, such was the overwhelming wave of support and the positive feedback.
“Shops taking part were singing the praises of the boost in footfall and business it brought through their door – and we saw city centre footfall increase that weekend.
“Increased footfall and businesses reporting more customers will of course translate to increased spending and sales, which is more than welcome.
“And shoppers also loved the buzz and the excitement it created – not to mention the discounts and special offers they were delighted to find when they arrived in the city centre for that all-important in-person shopping experience.
“We at Team Aberdeen are delighted to once again deliver Shop Aberdeen for the Granite City and I hope many more traders and outlets will come together to make it even bigger and better this April.”
Shop Aberdeen is open to all retailers within the key area covered by Aberdeen Inspired, the city centre Business Improvement District and the event is laser-focused on boosting shops in that footprint at the heart of the Granite City.
Adrian said: “We have consulted closely with city centre traders on if Shop Aberdeen should return – a resounding ‘yes’ – and when they would like to see it come back, so this is very much the retailers themselves steering the direction of what will hopefully be a boost for them and the wider city centre economy.”
That sentiment was echoed by Rosemary Michie, of Michie’s
on Union Street, who has been a champion of the Shop Aberdeen concept from the very start and was the first to join support the April outing for the event.
“We are delighted to be the first to sign up for Shop Aberdeen again! The campaign is a wonderful initiative to showcase the incredible range of retailers on offer throughout the city,” said Rosemary.
“We are passionately committed to encouraging people to visit bricks and mortar shops in-person and wholeheartedly support initiatives like this, which not only benefit local business, but the customer as well.”
Jenni Halminen, customer service leader at sports store Decathlon in Union Square, said they were also delighted to be one of the first retailers to sign up for Shop Aberdeen.
“We were part of it last year and really enjoyed it. It was good to get the Decathlon name around Aberdeen and we had a lot of people coming in,” she said. “I expect (this time) to see new faces that perhaps didn’t know Decathlon was here, help us get a new customer base and maybe get new people into a new sport.”
“It will help other shops in Aberdeen as well. It will drive their customer base from online to the actual stores. So, it’s a good advertisement for people to come to the city centre. And it’s a good push to remind them that all these shops are here and you can get whatever you want on the same day and you don’t have to wait.”
Kate Timperley, project manager with Aberdeen Inspired, said Shop Aberdeen offered an outstanding opportunity for retailers and traders to boost their business over the long weekend.
She said: “I am confident the boost Shop Aberdeen brought in October will happen again from April 24 to 27 and I would urge as many retailers as possible to be part of this special event.”
Kate said that those taking part were free to decide what offering they wanted to put forward during the campaign, be it discounts, free gifts, or events they could stage in-store to bring people in.
“The more enticing the offers the more customers will be attracted into the city centre helping create a busy, buzzing atmosphere in the city centre,” she said.
“We really would welcome stores wanting to stage special events or one-offs – possibly like a fashion show or in-store live music - that will help create almost a festival atmosphere around Shop Aberdeen.”
Shop Aberdeen is open to all manner of traders, from fashion and beauty to household, health and leisure.
Kate said: “Shop Aberdeen is a celebration of the city’s vital retail sector and an invitation for people to come into town and re-discover the joy of shopping in person. Nothing can match being in a shop, browsing what they have and discovering the perfect thing you need – even if you didn’t know you wanted it.
“Hopefully that joy will extend well beyond the four days of Shop Aberdeen and give our traders a boost that lasts all year round.”
If you are a business and want to be part of Shop Aberdeen, you can find out more and sign up here.