COVID Update 57

We know how tough it’s been for most businesses, but there is light at the end of the tunnel with just under 3 weeks to go until everything unlocks on December 2nd.

As your BID, we intend to be well prepared for then and to do everything we can to promote our town centre businesses both far and wide.

Please see attached our updated ’20 Reasons’ Poster which will also appear full length in Bus Shelters around the Borough, and also the printed Banners that you will see displayed in the town centre. We have a full page advert in the Hinckley Times on both the 2nd and 9th and in the next issue of the Borough Bulletin. We are also grateful to the Borough Council for granting free parking in most Car Parks on December Saturdays up until Christmas – please see the poster attached.

Apart from maximising your messages on our social media, as well as that of Wonderful Hinckley which we jointly fund with the Borough Council, we will be directing everyone to our popular website on which every BID business is featured.

To do that most efficiently, website updates are currently underway which will allow us to add icons to show which businesses offer the following services both now and after the Lockdown:

• Click and Collect
• Online/Telephone Order and Delivery
• Gift Vouchers available
• An existing on-line selling platform

All we ask you to do is complete the information on this link and submit it as quickly as possible so that we can start to make the updates to your business profile on our website which receives 10,000+ hits a month. We want to be ready for the December 3rd rush!

No doubt many of you will be opening for longer hours and for more days in the run up to Christmas, and we need to get that information to your customers. Please take a look at your entry on the www.hinckleybid.co.uk website, and if the days and hours are changing, please send updated information to steve@hinckleybid.co.uk.

Many thanks, stay safe and well.

Our Best Dressed Christmas Window competition has officially launched and we invite all Hinckley Town centre businesses to get involved!

After such a difficult year, having an abundance of Christmas windows adds hugely to the festive atmosphere of the Town Centre for visitors and creates great excitement for visitors of all ages. Due to Covid restrictions, we are unable to host our popular Santa’s Grotto this year, however, we hope you can create as much Christmas fun as possible through your seasonal window displays! We are also promoting the Town Centre far and wide.

To enter, simply submit your Christmas window photographs at any time from now to info@hinckleybid.co.uk (please head these "Christmas Shop Window") for us to share on both our and Wonderful Hinckley’s social media. These types of posts on social media tend to generate lots of interest, with ‘liking’ and ‘sharing’, which is a great way of promoting everything the town centre has to offer. Likewise, please send us pictures of Christmas Gift ideas and we will do the same.

The overall winner and four highly commended entries will be selected by an independent judge on Monday 14th December, with a prestigious glass Trophy for the Winner and Certificates awarded to the Highly Commended entries.

The winners will be announced on Friday, 18th December.

Good luck everyone!

Information will shortly be available and all businesses will be sent details of ‘How to Claim’. The Forms (one of which will need completing) are being tested now, and Government Funding is expected to be sent to Councils during next week for them to distribute. We will advise you as soon as these are available.