Building on the excitement around the refurbishment, ‘Grow with Grafton’ was aimed at local entrepreneurs and small businesses looking to expand with the once in a lifetime opportunity of securing prime retail space, for free, in the centre on offer.
All they were asked to do was submit their business plan via a custom-built microsite from which a shortlist of finalists was drawn. Our finalists were then invited to present their proposals to a panel, which included local The Apprentice winner Simon Ambrose, who offered advice and business support.
The initiative attracted 76 applications in total, secured five new permanent retailers for the centre and 17 rolling commercial agreements. It also drove an 11.7% increase in footfall and following its success, was rolled out across six other centres in the client portfolio.
