Survey marks the first birthday of BID scheme BY HELEN WHITE
SINCE 2017 the businesses trading in Stockport town centre have enjoyed the benefits of being part of the Business Improvement District (BID) branded as Totally Stockport.
Before Totally Stockport launched, the team behind the BID consulted with the businesses in the BID levy area to find out what they wanted the BID to deliver for their businesses, the anticipated outcomes and to what extent they wanted to become involved in delivering the original business plan.
The BID team also carried out a survey among the residents in the ‘villages’ of Stockport borough to identify how often they visited the town centre, the nature of their visit, their overall opinion and what else they would like to see here.
Now that the BID has reached its first birthday, the Totally Stockport team have been back out into the villages to discover how the survey results might have changed in light of the £1bn programme of investment that is now underway.
In the last 12 months, the Redrock leisure area has opened, an ideal destination for families and visitors who can dine in one of the new restaurants, meet friends in the new Barritto Lounge bar, indulge in Creams and the 1950s retro American style icecream parlour.
The Light Cinema, a new experience in family entertainment, has been a big success and has out-performed the rest of the Light Cinema group.
Joining the latest in leisure is a smart new gym opening this week.
Over the past 12 months Totally Stockport have encouraged new visitors into the town.
The Foodie Festival and the BIG Day out attracted huge crowds and the success of the Makers Market has resulted in them now bringing over 50 stalls in to the Market Place every month.
Parking, security and Wi-Fi continue to be uppermost on the agenda along with supporting new and emerging businesses, creating more events and working with the BID levy payers and partners to create a vibrant and sustainable town centre economy.
The first 12 months of activities can be found on the BID website – www.totallystockport. co.uk - a central pool of information for news and events along with minutes from the BID board meetings.
The current five-year BID term comes to an end in March 2022 and consequently the BID team need to confirm with the BID levy payers that the BID is focusing on what they need and want.
A second town centre business focussed questionnaire is about to be circulated which will help to do this.
It will take just a few minutes to complete it but the results will have a long term impact on the businesses within the BID area.
All responses will be kept entirely confidential and not shared individually with others.
If you would like to discuss your views and complete the survey form with a member of the Stockport BID team please contact the BID office on 0161 244 9896, or via email at info@ totallystockport.co.uk and we will arrange a meeting with you.