Bury Free Press BID Column September 2026
As we move into autumn, I have been reflecting upon what went on in the summer in the town centre and obviously lots of warm weather immediately springs to mind!
Our Food and Drink Festival over the bank holiday weekend was a huge success with two very busy days for traders at the event and also our own businesses, who fund these activities through their BID levy. Our ’66 World Cup Trail was also a success but alas once more an England team couldn’t match the achievement of Sir Alf & his team.
At our recent AGM I made our businesses aware that I intend to stand down from my role at the end of our financial year in March.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at the BID role during the past 15 years. Now is the right time to hand over the reins to someone else to further develop and grow the organisation to ensure we continue to provide great value to our member businesses. It’s a job that I would wholeheartedly encourage anyone, with a love for our town centre and who has senior management experience, to apply for.
One of the initiatives that I am very proud of is our town centre gift card, which since its launch 6 years ago, has led to over £200k being spent in town centre businesses, the majority of which, I am sure would have otherwise been spent on large corporation gift cards. Over 80 local business accept our cards and there is no reason why many more BID businesses could do the same.
The gift card is a great way of rewarding staff and supporting the local economy at the same time. Many local employers use our gift card to show their appreciation of their employees towards the end of the year and if this interests you then please get in touch and we can explain how easy it is to do this.
Bury St Edmunds is going international! This October, The Nutshell, officially the UK’s smallest pub according to Guinness World Records, will be recreated at The British Fair at Hankyu Department Store in Osaka, Japan.
The Angel Hotel will also have a pop-up at the fair, showcasing cakes and desserts inspired by Charles Dickens, who famously stayed at the hotel. Bury St Edmunds tour guide John Saunders will be representing the town, at the event.
The initiative came about after Hankyu approached Bury St Edmunds and Beyond, the town’s official tourism brand, operated by Our Bury St Edmunds BID. It is a fantastic opportunity to showcase our town, its heritage and businesses to an international audience.
Then it’s from Japan to the USA! We are delighted to be working with the Bury St Edmunds Literature Festival to welcome bestselling author Madeline Martin to the UK, next month, for the launch of her new novel, A Time of Witches. Madeline visited Bury St Edmunds to research the historic witch trials, which feature in the book.
Her visit is one of a number of initiatives supporting our new digital marketing campaign, promoting the witch trials as a fascinating part of the town’s heritage and an attraction for visitors.
