Burgess Hill shops welcome loyalty scheme to support independent businesses

The Burgess Hill’s Shop Independent Loyalty Scheme begins on Friday (April 1) and gives shoppers the chance to win a free hamper of goodies every three months.

It aims to showcase the products and services of independent businesses by encouraging customers to collect a loyalty card from participating stores.

A Town Council spokesperson said: “Over the coming weeks we will be supplying participating businesses with the flyers, window poster and most importantly loyalty cards, in readiness for the launch date.

“This scheme will not cost businesses anything, bar a donated small gift per hamper or percentage off a service,” they said.

Alexis Rose Turnbull, assistant director of Mabel’s Emporium, said the initiative should be effective at encouraging people to shop locally again.

“There’s something to win at the end of it,” she said, adding that Mabel’s is considering adding gift vouchers to the hamper or possibly a cake.

“We’ve got two sides of our business – there’s the tea rooms and we also have the retail side so we could do vouchers for either,” she said.

Alexis said she understood why so many people moved to online shopping during the Covid pandemic.

But she said Mabel’s Emporium is invested in the community, hosting raffles, charity events and workshops, and would like people to help keep local businesses afloat.

“Without all the local shops there’s nothing to do in your town,” she said.

Megan King, owner of Scrapless, an eco-friendly, low waste food store in The Martlets Shopping Centre, said the scheme is a good idea.

She hopes people will venture into a variety of independent shops and said her store’s hamper contribution could be either a voucher or a plastic-free ‘starter box’.

Megan said shopping within Burgess Hill would help keep the town alive and hopes that the community will support their local businesses.

Claire Clayton, proprietor of Rosanne Florists in Keymer Parade, said the scheme is ‘certainly worth trying’ and that her shop will contribute ‘something seasonal’ to the hamper, like plants or gifts.