An exciting new concept for kids has arrived at the OUTLET shopping village Banbridge: W5 Lite.
In an exciting first for one of Northern Ireland’s top family attractions, W5 has brought its award-winning interactive discovery experience outside Belfast, to join the host of big brands at the OUTLET.
W5 Lite is a free taster experience at the OUTLET and will offer families the opportunity to enjoy some of W5’s hands-on exhibits: interactives such as Flying Fish, One in a Million, Sound Tube and others which develop creativity and skills in animation.
Centre Manager of the OUTLET, Chris Nelmes said, “We are delighted with our new partnership with W5. It’s a genuinely exciting innovation that provides something for young families that isn’t available at any other retail centre in Ireland. W5 Lite extends our offer to shoppers who are looking for great value as well as a fun day out. We hope it will be a great success.”
Chris Nelmes continued, “W5 Lite is all about grown-ups sharing experiences and discovery together with the younger members of the family. Smart shoppers will know we have an array of big brands offering superb outlet prices all year round at the OUTLET. Now you can bring the kids, spend the day together, shop, eat out and discover W5 Lite too.
“Don’t tell the children you know, but many of the exhibits at W5 Lite are linked to things they are learning about at school. This gives them a fantastic opportunity to get an independent hands-on try at things like animation, in a pressure-free fun environment – and a unique chance to show off their knowledge to their parents and carers.”
The OUTLET shopping village attracts large numbers of visitors from all over Northern Ireland as well as a substantial number of cross-border shoppers.
Chris Nelmes said, “The opening of W5 Lite at the OUTLET is an important step in the development of Banbridge as a gateway to other destination tourism opportunities throughout Northern Ireland. By creating a truly value for money family destination, we hope this will encourage Irish visitors to come back and find out more about what’s on offer in the region.”
Liam Hannaway, Chief Executive of Banbridge District Council said, “This is a great new addition to the OUTLET and we are delighted to welcome the arrival of W5 to our area. This will have tremendous appeal for local families and we hope it will provide an even more compelling reason to visit Banbridge, to spend time exploring the wide range of sporting, cultural and retail opportunities in the area and supporting the region’s economy.”
The launch of W5 Lite also marks a new partnership between the OUTLET and W5, which will see the OUTLET sponsoring W5’s interactive START area for the under-eights in its Odyssey Belfast-based attraction. Here, children can build a house, make a splash and sail their own boat, make music, explore a castle and play shop in a miniature-scale supermarket.
W5 Chief Executive Dr Sally Montgomery said, “This is an exciting new partnership for W5 which makes really sound sense. The OUTLET is seeing visitors coming from all over Ireland in search of great value outlet shopping. W5 is enjoying large numbers of local families, overseas tourists and schools visitors coming to share our interactive exhibits, events and experiences. This new partnership gives both organisations a great opportunity to showcase what they do to a fresh audience, add value to the other and, we hope, ultimately to drive and develop each other’s business. These unique partnerships are really important in Northern Ireland’s future as a tourism destination, as we are all striving for the same shared economic success.”