--- title: How Chester made their gift card program a success | Miconex Partner Portal description: The Chester Gift Card- read how they made this local gift card a standout success. image: https://mi-cnx.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/The-Cross-NJS_6982-scaled.jpg --- [![MiconexLogo](https://mi-cnx.com/hubfs/MiconexLogo.png)](https://mi-cnx.com) - Gift Cards - [UK Gift Cards](https://mi-cnx.com/uk-gift-cards) - [Ireland Gift Cards](https://mi-cnx.com/ireland-gift-cards) - [Canada Gift Cards](https://mi-cnx.com/canada-gift-cards) - [US Gift Cards](https://mi-cnx.com/usa-gift-cards) - [Scotland Loves Local](https://mi-cnx.com/scotland-loves-local) - [About Us](https://mi-cnx.com/about-miconex) - Case Studies - [UK Client Case Studies](https://mi-cnx.com/casestudies-uk) - [Ireland Client Case Studies](https://mi-cnx.com/casestudies-ireland) - [Canada Client Case Studies](https://mi-cnx.com/casestudies-canada) - [USA Client Case Studies](https://mi-cnx.com/casestudies-usa) - [Latest News](https://mi-cnx.com/news) - [Contact](https://mi-cnx.com/contact-us) - [Resources](https://mi-cnx.com/resources) - [White Paper UK](https://mi-cnx.com/ukwhitepaper) - [White Paper Ireland](https://mi-cnx.com/irelandwhitepaper) - [White Paper Scotland Loves Local](https://mi-cnx.com/scotlandwhitepaper) - [White Paper Canada](https://mi-cnx.com/canadawhitepaper) - [White Paper USA](https://mi-cnx.com/usawhitepaper) # How Chester made their gift card program a success The Chester Gift Card- read how they made this local gift card a standout success. [Admin](https://mi-cnx.com/news/author/admin) Jun 28, 2021 --- # The Chester Gift Card program Chester BID launches Chester Gift Card in a move to pay it forward and save the high street in Christmas 2020. [Request more Information](https://mi-cnx.com/news/chester-gift-card#form) ![](https://mi-cnx.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/The-Cross-NJS_6982-scaled.jpeg) ![](https://static.hsstatic.net/BlogImporterAssetsUI/ex/missing-image.png) ## Part of the city’s battleplan to save the high street The Chester Gift Card can be spent at over 100 retailers, leisure suppliers and restaurants and bars across the city centre. It is a pre-paid Mastercard that acts as a local currency for anything from a coffee to a night in a hotel, an experience or a shopping spree. Cards are purchased online and delivered directly to the recipient. Carl Critchlow, Chester BID Manager said: ‘It is no surprise to anyone that our city centre is in peril. We’ve struggled through the first lockdown and despite a decent summer, the Tier 3 restrictions in Liverpool combined with the Wales lockdown left our footfall and city businesses in dire straits. The national lockdown is necessary of course, and we fully support the move to stop the NHS becoming overwhelmed. However, it has come at a disastrous time – the time of year when our businesses usually reap the financial benefits of the start of the busy Christmas period.’ ‘Anecdotally, I’ve heard people say, ‘I don’t want to buy my Christmas presents from Amazon, I want to support my high street’. Many aren’t sure how to ensure they are putting the money directly into the hands of the independent businesses they want to support. The Chester Gift Card offers a simple way to do just that. It also means if you don’t know what gift to buy, this gives the recipient options from across the city, from clothing to beauty services, afternoon teas to cocktails.’ Carl Critchlow - Chester BID Manager ## An established, trusted programme The Chester Gift Card is part of a well-established Town & City Gift Cards Programfrom Scottish fintech Miconex. It has been rolled across other UK cities including Glasgow and Bath, where the support to the city’s businesses has been invaluable. Over £2 million has been spent through Town & City Gift Cards since the first program was introduced in Perth in 2015.  It’s a socially conscious gift choice. £34.56 is the average purchase price for our local gift cards, and we usually see 65% spent on top of the value of the gift card. It also encourages city wide experiences as people will be more experimental if they’re given a Chester Gift Card. The money spent will be directly locked into Chester’s economy and help businesses, and the individuals and families that own and work for them, overcome what has been a desperately hard year. Colin Munro - Managing Director, Miconex ## Tapping into a community-led spirit Julie Swinnerton, head of Chester Business Club said: ‘We have seen great unity come from this crisis – from the #ChesterTogether campaign that connects businesses to the residents to seeing many of our hospitality businesses recently supporting free school meals during the school holidays. It’s so important we continue to push community-led initiatives.’ Many of our city businesses are going to be using the Chester Gift Card as Christmas presents or staff incentives. It shows a heartening amount of collective responsibility and we are delighted to see how much support we are already receiving. I heartily   encourage other businesses to join in, either by buying gift cards or joining the scheme – or both! Julie Swinnerton - Head of Chester Business Club ## Interested in your own program? Submit the form below to find out more from one of our experts and hear how we’re helping local communities harness the current customer mood for shopping while supporting local businesses. Alternatively, you can always call us on [+44 (0)1738 444 376](tel:441734%20444%20376) ## Similar posts Case Studies ### [Case study: the Aberdeen Gift Card](https://mi-cnx.com/news/case-study-the-aberdeen-gift-card) Background to the Aberdeen Gift Card The Aberdeen Gift Card launched on the 26th November 2020 and can be spent with 200 businesses in Aberdeen. In... Kelly Topping Jan 11, 2022 Articles ### [East Ayrshire. Using local gift cards to disburse funds with dignity](https://mi-cnx.com/news/east-ayrshire-using-local-gift-cards-to-disburse-funds-with-dignity) One of the most innovative uses of local gift cards as local currency is the East Ayrshire Gift Card. Read about how East Ayrshire supported families... Alan Williamson Mar 1, 2022 ### [The East Ayrshire Gift Card – Case study](https://mi-cnx.com/news/the-east-ayrshire-gift-card) Read about the success of the East Ayrshire Gift Card. Admin May 31, 2021 ### Get notified on the latest Miconex News Be the first to know about new case studies and Miconex news. 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