THOUSANDS of students descended on a North East shopping centre on Monday night (2 October), as part of a discount shopping evening for the region’s new and returning students.
The Bridges shopping centre, Sunderland, hosted its seventh annual Student Raid, where a record-breaking 9000 shoppers attended to grab a selection of bargains, special promotions and freebies.
More than 40 of the centre’s stores were involved in the free event – which was supported by leading student discount provider UNiDAYS – and featured top retailers such as River Island, Topshop and Schuh offering 20 per cent off on the night.
As well as discounts, some stores had additional incentives, including a free shower gel or body lotion with a £10 spend at The Body Shop, goody bags with purchases at Waterstones, Fragrance Shop and Footasylum, and makeup artists and hair stylists at Topshop.
Further perks included free sweets handed out by well-known comic strip characters and free parking passes for those who drove to the Bridges.
Samantha Czwordon-Wright, marketing manager at the Bridges is delighted with the success of this year’s event:
“This is our seventh year of running the Student Raid and it’s an event that we look forward to holding year in, year out.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to introduce our strong retail offer to the existing and new intake of students in the city.”
For further information about the Bridges, go to www.thebridges-shopping.com/