KirkgateNow summer 2017

KIRKGATENOW KIRKGATENOW I Issue Four I Summer 2017

Welcome

from Centre Manager Catherine Riley

Welcome to this sizzling summer edition of Kirkgate Now! As the temperature rises in the city, Kirkgate Shopping is proving a sanctuary of cool from the summer sun – the perfect place to enjoy the shade, pick up a hat, some sunscreen and grab a cool drink before heading back out into the steamy city.

Things have definitely been hotting up in the centre with the launch of our Modelsearch competition, our hero dads, the sensational Tour De Yorkshire and a charitable new retailer in the fold.

With so much to share since our last edition, we hope you find this newsletter brimming with exciting news from the Kirkgate family.

Our hero dads Some of our very own wonderful dads helped launch the Kirkgate online Father’s Day competition in June and the response was thoroughly heart-warming.

Security guards Ashley Sykes and Paul Carroll, alongside deputy security manager Tariq Mahmood, brought their little ones in for a beautiful photoshoot to encourage people to enter the social media competition to win £100 of vouchers.

Children of all ages were asked to celebrate everything their dad does for them, why they’re a hero and the fun things they do together using the #KirkgateMoments hashtag. Our winner were Aysha, Zara and Zak Tennant, who touched us all with her wonderful tribute to her lovely dad, Richard: My daddy lets me put make up and nail varnish on him. My daddy lets me have treats when mummy says no. My daddy brushes our hair for school when mummy is poorly. My daddy has tea parties with my teddies and dolls. My daddy is there to kiss me when I fall and all this after he has had a long day at work and is super tired. Now we have a little brother to make our family complete and even though he never lets daddy and mummy sleep daddy still remembers to kiss me good night and read us books. Our tickle monster daddy.

Well done Aysha, Zara and Zak! pg. 1

contents Our hero dads

pg. 1

Modelsearch

pg. 2

Tour de Yorkshire

pg. 2

Born in Bradford

pg. 3

Free book shop

pg. 3

Retailer spotlight: O2

pg. 4

Eggs-factor

pg. 4

Five minutes with…

pg. 4

KIRKGATENOW I Issue Four I Summer 2017

Bradford’s next top model One of the highlights of Kirkgate Shopping’s calendar returned for its 15th year.

Modelsearch was launched in May with two weekends of scouting days where professional model hunters scoured Kirkgate for budding models set to follow in the footsteps of Gigi Hadid and Cara Delevigne.

Modelsearch scouts included Kirkgate Shopping’s Catherine Riley, Sue Smith and Siobhan Willis, alongside Saskia Vasey of DK Models and Casting.

Categories were split into four age groups: four to six, seven to ten, eleven to fifteen and sixteen and over with the competition receiving more than 200 entrants.

Centre manager Catherine Riley said: “We are thrilled that Modelsearch is back for its 15th year.

“The level of entries in 2016 was really impressive but this year’s contest was bigger and better than ever. It’s not just the highlight of our calendar but creates a real buzz throughout the city centre.

Budding models of all ages came into our centre with family and friends for support – it’s such a positive feeling, creates a fantastic atmosphere and makes wonderful use of our facilities.” pg. 2

Last year’s winners starred in Kirkgate’s marketing materials and hoardings around the centre, also securing a professional photoshoot to create a personalised portfolio. Two of the winners then went on to be signed up to DK Models and Casting.

The grand finale took place on 2 July where winners from each category were crowned and took part in a catwalk show featuring clothes and products from our very own retailers.

Winners names and photos will be revealed in our next issue!

Previous winner, Pollyanna Tait, said: “I’ve always aspired to be a model and taking part in Modelsearch increased my confidence, gave me catwalk experience and now I have a professional portfolio.”

Tour de Bradford Kirkgate Shopping went cyclingcrazy in April when it welcomed the Tour de Yorkshire to Bradford!

Here at Kirkgate a bespoke art installation by Luke Owens was commissioned to create an eye‑catching rooftop piece featuring chilli peppers to represent the ‘Curry Capital’ and the hashtags #LoveKirkgate and #LoveBradford to encourage social media engagement around the centre’s Tour de Yorkshire celebratory activity.

The finished artwork was around 10 metres wide and clearly visible to the aerial cameras from the official Tour de Yorkshire helicopter.

With the support of Pennine Cycles, centre manager Catherine Riley rallied members of her retail and support team with bicycles on the roof of the car park to celebrate the prestigious return of the tour to the city.

Catherine said: “The Tour de Yorkshire has once again put Bradford on the map and this was a great opportunity for the community to get involved with a Yorkshire-wide event. Families flocked to the centre after the race to enjoy in‑store promotions and treats were handed out to our younger visitors to celebrate this momentous event.”

KIRKGATENOW I Issue Four I Summer 2017

Anniversary celebrations for

Born in Bradford Kirkgate Shopping was honoured to be chosen by the pioneering team behind Born in Bradford to celebrate its 10th anniversary of the first baby born under the scheme.

Born in Bradford (BiB) was launched in 2007 to research childhood illnesses in the city and work with the NHS and Bradford community to improve child health and wellbeing. It has since involved 13,500 children from the Bradford district and documented new insights into the health of babies and primary school children which have been shared across the world.

BiB set up a pop-up shop in the centre in April to provide play and educational activities to celebrate a decade of research and support for Bradford babies.

Dr Rosie McEachan, BiB programme director, commented: “Our oldest child turning 10 is an important milestone for us as we embark on the next stage of our project researching what influences good health and wellbeing as families grow up.

“Kirkgate Shopping’s location is perfect for meeting with and talking to parents, carers and children about our study and for starting the next part of our research journey from our pop-up shop. The centre offers such a family environment, it’s a perfect fit for our study.”

The next phase of the BiB research will focus on ‘growing up’ and will see the team meeting thousands of families over the next two years on a giant BiB bus currently located at St Luke’s Hospital.

The research has secured prestigious funding from both the Medical Research Council and Economic and Social Research Council.

Centre manager Catherine Riley added: “We are delighted to support Born in Bradford which does such fantastic work to improve the health of babies and children in our community.”

Among those who helped BiB celebrate this milestone were Yusef Riasat who was also enjoying his 10th birthday at the centre.

Ten thousand free books for Bradford The centre has welcomed an inspiring new retailer to the fold this month as the Global Education Trust moved into Darley Street.

GET aims to increase literacy rates amongst children and adults in the region and their new unit in the centre will act as a base for the charity’s GET FREE BOOKS initiative which encourages people to donate and collect books to make reading more accessible.

Centre manager Catherine Riley said: “We will also be supporting the charity financially to help boost its bid to improve literacy in Bradford.”

GET aims to hand over 10,000 donated books to Bradford residents by Christmas and will be accepting donations at the shop seven days a week to hit its target.

It will also be welcoming customers who want to take books that spark their imagination.

GET trustee, Junaid Raheim, commented: “The Kirkgate Centre is the perfect partner for this project with its history of supporting literacy in Bradford.

Only 33% of children in Bradford read daily outside of school which is less than the national average – something we want to change.”

Catherine added: “Time and time again Kirkgate shoppers have shown their generosity with every scheme we support. I expect this call for good-condition reading material will generate plenty of lovely books for the Bradford community. Together we will make GET’s initiative a huge success and ignite a love of reading amongst the children and adults of this city.”

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KIRKGATENOW I Issue Four I Summer 2017

We got the eggs-factor The centre was transformed into a hotbed of singing talent as ‘Eggs‑factor 2017’ took over on Good Friday.

Retailer spotlight: O2 Kirkgate Shopping has homed the O2 store for 12 years. Here, the store’s marketing manager Chloe Aristodemou explains why they love their location:

Having an O2 store in Kirkgate Shopping was an easy decision for us; our unit is located right next to the Westgate Mall entrance so is great for catching customers coming in and out of the centre and is really accessible. The centre itself is well known as the home of value shopping in Bradford which fits in with our target customers perfectly.

Since taking over the shop we’ve found the centre management and all the Kirkgate staff so helpful and accommodating. They’re always willing to help us out with any promotions we have on and have given us additional space on the centre floor to help promote our special offers. That kind of

service and support is really appreciated and can make all the difference as to how successful a promotion is.

As a retailer that has several offers throughout the year we always have something new to promote which is great for bringing customers back time and time again. We will soon be offering discounts for students ahead of the new academic year and pupils looking to have all the technology they need before starting university or college.

Apple is one of our bestselling brands and has a new handset due out in September which is great news for us as whenever they launch a new product it’s a really busy time at the shop. However, Christmas is always our busiest period and with all the other festive activities around the centre it’s a fantastic time of year for everyone.

Hopefuls from across the district took part in the competition to expose the musical stars of tomorrow.

The event was judged by VIP guest X-Factor 2016 star Christian Burrows who wowed audiences and judges with his self-penned lyrics about his late brother on the ITV blockbusting series.

Radio station, Pulse 1, wanted a piece of the action and sent top presenter Rosie Madison to the centre to cover all the auditions and gossip from the day.

Catherine Riley, centre manager, thanked all those involved: “Eggs-factor 2017 was such a fun event for the centre and certainly made a change from the usual chocolate-eating and egg-hunting. Everyone got into the spirit of the event and every act was cheered on by all onlookers. It was a great atmosphere and a massive draw for visitors so we can’t wait to hold similar events in the future.”

What has been your best Kirkgate ‘moment’?

Recognition for myself and the team at the British Security Industry Association awards. My favourite quote is: “We’re not a team because we work together, we’re a team because we respect, trust and care for each other”.

Five minutes with…

Mirko Maric Customer Service Manager

How long have you worked at Kirkgate Shopping?

I joined 23 years ago as security officer. I’ve since been a supervisor, security manager and now customer service manager. I have to pinch myself sometimes! pg. 4

What is the best thing about Bradford in the summer?

The many events and festivals and the Mirror Pool.

What is your favourite Kirkgate event and why?

Definitely the Reindeer Parade! Kids dragging their parents out of bed early in the morning for the real reindeers, Santa and friendly Kirkgate staff. Waiting in the cold for dreams come true. I still love every single moment!

Describe Kirkgate in three words Feels like home.

Feeling social Here are some examples of what our customers are saying on Twitter: The @KirkgateCentre has got me all excited for #TDY - Bring on the weekend!!! #Bradford Top service from City Florists in @ KirkgateCentre Local independent, delivered within an hour with no fee. #shoplocal#shopindie Ready to do some judging for this year’s #EggsFactor @KirkgateCentre #Bradford Good luck to all our singers!