Indian Summer for retailers at VQ
Thursday 11th October saw nearly 1,000 people queuing outside Victoria Quarter for the start of the centre’s annual Shopping Affair extravaganza, which was another great success in spite of the prevailing economic climate.
This year’s event, the ninth for the centre, saw in excess of 9,500 people attend over the course of the evening, making the event significant for both VQ and Leeds.
Each Shopping Affair has a different overarching theme, with this year’s being Indian Summer. Customers were entertained by live music from electric violin duo Storm, Indian dancers, aerial artistes and Henna tattoo artists, whilst taking full advantage of exclusive offers and discounts available throughout the centre’s stores.
VQ Centre Director, John Bade commented, “Whilst The Shopping Affair is certainly about shopping, the added value of the themes and live entertainment I’m sure contribute significantly to its overall success.
“Competition in retail is intense at any time,” he continued, “arguably even more so these days with the advent of increasing online options for shoppers adding to strong offers from the High Street. Events such as these are as much a night out for customers, as they are an opportunity to take advantage of exclusive store discounts, and taken as a whole, provide a great evening that only adds to the shopping experience, particularly against internet retailing.”
Mr Bade added, “Keeping customers engaged with the centre is something we can never be complacent about, so it was especially pleasing to see so many customers at this year’s event.”
Initial data suggests that takings were in line with last year’s event, the second most successful in the nine year holding of the Shopping Affair, maintaining the overall positive trend for the event.
Next year's Shopping Affair will take place on Thursday 10th October 2013.