Rotherham town centre business boss targets big-name shops

THE man in charge of leading the regeneration of Rotherham town centre says he is working hard to bring back big names to the town.

And Rotherham Borough Council’s business development manager Tim O’Connell, says the town centre could act as a test-bed for the launch of big-name new products.

He was speaking about new figures showing that the number of shoppers visiting the town was rising, which the council puts down to the number of independent and specialist traders on offer.

And Mr O’Connell says the town could offer well-known companies a platform for new products.

“We could maybe best a test track for these people by offering them somewhere different to launch and develop their brands,” he said.

What do you think? Is Mr O'Connell's idea the way forward? Use the "write a comment" buttons to post your views.

“Rising footfall and offering a wide range of shops are both ways of encouraging big names and different names to consider giving Rotherham a chance.”

Mr O’Connell said that the council planned to keep boosting footfall with events like the recent Diamond Jubilee street party and trying to bring in more big names.

“We have Slamfest, a week-long music event, coming up at the end of the month and that will helpfully provide a boost to the shops,” he said.

“As for the big names, we have benefited from the likes of Greenwoods and Discount UK and we are still interested in bringing back some of the really big names—that’s something we’re working hard to achieve.”

READ MORE