STRETFORD Mall bosses say the centre has enjoyed a hugely successful 12 month period, with it welcoming nearly 500,000 extra visits in the past year.

Friday 8 July 2016 saw leading sports retailer, JD, open at Stretford Mall – the third new retailer to do so in quick succession. Since then the numbers have boomed.

Costa Coffee and Aldi had both opened in the weeks prior to JD, and the arrival of the new trio – combined with three hours of free parking – has played a key role in helping the centre buck the national trend of declining footfall in shopping destinations by more than 10 per cent.

Bringing the grocery giants and coffee experts to the centre marked a huge investment from the landlord and saw a combined 19,700 sq ft addition to the centre alongside the less visible but important behind the scenes work to bring JD to the centre. Shoppers have responded by visiting in their hundreds of thousands.

“We’ve had a fantastic 12 months since the three retailers opened their doors to the public,” said Stretford Mall centre manager, Gareth Wilkins.

“We knew that they would prove hugely popular with our shoppers and help grow and develop our retail and leisure offering, but the reaction has been well above what we expected.

“Footfall in shopping centres is down, on average, by more than two per cent nationally so to not only be bucking that trend but to see an increase that means we’re doing so by more than 10 per cent is something that everyone at Stretford Mall is immensely proud of.

“We’ve enjoyed increasing numbers of visitors and stores throughout the mall have all played their part in helping to maintain that throughout the year.”

Despite huge numbers, Gareth wanted to assure shoppers that the team would not be resting on their laurels.

“This has been a great year for the centre and gives us even more motivation to continue to improve and develop the customer experience at Stretford Mall,” added Gareth.