Shops to '˜Pop Up' in town over Easter

Pop Up Shops to get a break in Ballymena over the Easter holiday period. (Editorial Image).

Such was the response to a ‘test town’ pop-up shops initiative in Carrick during last year’s August Bank Holiday weekend that Council have agreed at Committee level to extend it to Ballymena and Larne over a two week period in March/April.

The cost per town will be £2,000, members of the Economic Growth & Development Committee were told when they considered the recommended roll-out of the initiative at their latest meeting, last week.

Agreement to go ahead with the scheme across the three towns at a total cost of £6k was agreed by the committee on the proposal of Cllr Cheryl Johnston, seconded by Alderman Maureen Morrow.

The recommendation detailed that recruitment of participants would get underway from January 25 with applications assessed and entrepreneurs selected from the week commencing February 15, shop premises secured from March 14 and the opening of pop-up shops from March 21.

It was also pointed out that strict criteria will be in place to ensure that applications will only be considered from entrepreneurs who have never traded in a town centre environment and who currently live in the Mid & East Antrim borough.