Parents are being encouraged to head into Coventry city centre for last-minute back-to-school shopping to support local retailers as they prepare for the new school year.
Coventry Business Improvement District (BID) launched its ‘Back to School’ initiative earlier this month to highlight how the city centre has everything parents need ahead of term, from uniform and stationery, to shoes and sportswear.
The final weeks of the school summer holiday are a crucial period for businesses across the city centre which can see a major boost in trade, whether that is independent shops like Charles Ager and Cat Ballou, or national retailers such as WHSmith, Clarks and Sports Direct.
Schoolwear specialist Cat Ballou has been operating in the city for more than 50 years and has been at its current location in The Burges since 2010.
The well-known shop employs 15 additional members of staff to ensure it can continue to deliver a personal service for customers throughout August and September – with the period accounting for nearly half of its annual turnover.
Cat Ballou partners with more than 65 schools across Coventry to supply uniform and is also a popular choice for workwear year-round.
Ashok Kapur, Director of Cat Ballou, said: “It’s been a busy month already and we are expecting it to continue to ramp up as we approach the new school year.
“It’s a very important period for us as a business, and while we are open year round we do the bulk of our business during this period and in fact that accounts for nearly half our turnover.
“We have 10 people serving at any time in the shop, with each customer getting a personal service to help them get what they need quickly and efficiently.
“We know that budgets are tight at the moment for families, so this summer we have been offering a deposit scheme to reserve uniform and then families won’t have to pay until collection.
“Our best advice for families is to get the shopping done early, to take advantage of bundle prices in early August, but we are also constantly replenishing our stock to make sure that we can support people coming to us with only a couple of weeks to go until term time.”
Marks & Spencer, Cat Ballou, Primark, Peacocks and Pep & Co are all on hand for last-minute uniform purchases, while Clarks, Charles Ager, Deichmann and Shoezone can tick footwear off the schoolwear shopping list.
New addition to the city centre Sostrene Grene in the Lower Precinct joins WHSmith, Ryman, B&M and Tiger as go to locations for school stationery needs.
While Sports Direct, JD Sports, Footlocker and Footasylum are open to ensure that children have all the kit and equipment they need for PE lessons in the year ahead.
Joanne Glover, chief executive of Coventry BID, said: “We’re encouraging families to visit the city centre this year and tick off everything they need from their back-to-school shopping list.
“The city centre has an incredibly strong offering for school wear, equipment and supplies, with a wide range of shops that can cater for all the essential items, as well as special unique items from our independent shops.
“Back to school is a busy and important period for our retailers and a great opportunity for families to support city centre businesses.”
Find out more about getting back to school ready in Coventry City Centre at https://www.coventrycitycentre.co.uk/back-to-school-2024/