Charlbury Shops Preservation

Thu 22 Feb 2007, 16:12

Thanks Iain, that was useful information.
Coincidentally, I once set up a similar scheme for a chain of French farm shops in the Charantes. At the time the tricky part was the EPOS scanning software; but that was the early 90's and things have moved on since then. What was good was the marketing platform the scheme provided and the buyers liked the idea of a consolidated alternative to the big hypermarches.

I'd be happy to do a cost analysis if there was any real interest from retailers here.

Here's the beef from Haslemere:

21 businesses in and around Haslemere are eagerly awaiting the final touches to their bespoke loyalty cards as the dynamic new loyalty system branded ‘Haslemere Rewards’ is due to be unveiled by The Haslemere Initiative and Haslemere Chamber of Trade with an official launch planned for the 22nd November.

Cards are to ‘sport’ the newly designed Haslemere Rewards logo but the businesses and shops taking part have been encouraged by the organisers to place their branding on 2/3rd of the card too, making the cards unique to the business but nevertheless part of the Haslemere Rewards scheme. Shoppers need only to buy one card though, (£5 each) and once purchased they will be able to use that one card in all the other Haslemere Rewards participating shops and businesses.

‘Haslemere and its surrounding villages enjoy a wide range of attractive and independent businesses, said Melanie Odell, Chairman of the Haslemere Initiative, ‘The Haslemere Rewards scheme brings them together on a single high tech card. We feel the scope we are offering is unique because it allows participating businesses to operate their own rewards systems within the overall scheme!

The brand new project uses ‘cutting edge’ chip technology brought to the town by Savvy UK Ltd and it is this intelligent card system that allows the flexibility of using the same card amongst the area’s shops and businesses. ‘Data is stored directly in a chip on the Haslemere Reward card and this means that when the card is scanned it will recognise the business that it is being used in and update the appropriate ‘pot of rewards,’ explained Jon Chrimes of SAVVY UK Ltd.

There is no doubt that the project will benefit from an impressive yet representative array of businesses from hairdressers to florists, from chiropractors to jewellers and from cafés to photographers. But because the project connects shopping areas and surrounding villages the organisers are expecting a huge amount of public interest in the cards and in the resulting shopping experience!

Businesses are upbeat about the project and have chosen systems that offer either points or direct discounts. So for customers who like many this year have left their Christmas present buying a little later than normal, it looks as if the Haslemere Rewards will be an extra Christmas bonus all round.

Grayshott Pottery was one of the first companies to realise the benefits of the scheme. Managing Director Ed Snell said today 'At Grayshott Pottery, we feel it is important to reward our loyal customers who support us. This is why we are delighted to have the opportunity to join in with the Haslemere & Villages Rewards scheme. We plan to use a points system, so for every £1 spent our customers will be given 1 point and after 100 points have been saved we will give them a £10 voucher, which is equivalent to 10% discount off any goods in our Shop or Café Bistro.'

Arya Ingvorsen, President of the Chamber of Trade is confident that the scheme has all round benefits for Haslemere & villages customers but for the businesses too, ‘With Haslemere Rewards we want to encourage people to enjoy the advantages of shopping locally, said Mrs Ingvorsen. ' By offering Haslemere Rewards cardholders a range of discounts and promotions across a wide selection of businesses, shoppers and business users will benefit and in turn help stimulate the economy. More businesses have shown an interest in participating in the scheme after launch, so it is well worth buying a Haslemere Rewards card in order to take advantage of the special promotional offers over the next fifteen months."

The Haslemere Initiative has produced a newsletter that will go to around 15,000 homes in the area towards the end of the month. In the meantime copies will be available within participating businesses around the launch date and the Haslemere Rewards window sticker will identify participating shops and businesses. Shoppers will also be able to visit www.haslemere.com for up to the minute offers and information towards the end of the month.