COMMERCIAL ALUMINIUM SHOPFRONTS

Although it doesn't seem long since we were enjoying the summer heatwave, it's now less than three months to Christmas! Retailers should be thinking about how to create the best Christmas window display to grab the customers' attention. Window shopfronts are very important when it comes to attracting passers-by and if you have an eye-catching display, it gives you an advantage over high street competitors. Display your brand and demonstrate your store's unique personality - it's a proven winner for driving sales. © Marina Andrejchenko / Adobe Stock   Interactive displays Every year, there's huge competition to create the ‘perfect Christmas window display’, particularly among the major retailers and department stores. Christmas sales can compensate for a mediocre year, when shoppers flood in searching for the perfect gift. Traditionally, retailers go for plenty of sparkle when it comes to a festive display, stirring up some Christmas magic. One of the modern trends is an interactive display that can transform your storefront into a personalised advert. The displays will pitch products, depending on who's looking in the window, based on their gender or age. If a child walks past, for example, images of toys can be projected on to the window. The retailer who has an interactive display can stand out this Christmas.   Festive themes Another popular Christmas trend is combining a colour scheme of sparkling silver and gold on a winter white wonderland. For example, a white Christmas tree can have gold and silver ornaments, fixed together like pearls on a sparkly string. This is a particularly luxurious theme for a shop window. Environmentally conscious The country Christmas theme uses natural products, such as tree branches sprayed in gold, traditional wreaths, hand-crafted snowflakes and a plain linen cloth to create a rustic feel that makes shoppers think of Christmas past. The traditional display can showcase the items for sale without overpowering them and it can be a ‘greener’ way to bring your Christmas display to life.   Glitter-free Christmas The natural trend is being taken one step further by major retailer Marks and Spencer. The high street brand is having a glitter-free Christmas, in an effort to reduce single-use plastic in the environment. There won't be any glitter in the window display - nor will there be glitter in any of the store's Christmas celebration range including cards, crackers, wrapping paper and gift bags. Although glitter may look pretty, it isn't at all environmentally friendly and is a source of plastic waste. Marks and Spencer says it hopes to reduce its own waste, while encouraging customers to think "green" and recycle.   Reducing plastic waste Waitrose is also pledging to stop using non-biodegradable glitter in its range by Christmas 2020 and is seeking biodegradable alternatives instead. Budget supermarket Aldi has made a commitment to replace glitter with more eco-friendly alternatives. Glitter contains micro-plastics that can get into our oceans and harm marine life. According to a recent study, one-third of fish caught in the North Sea had micro-plastics, including glitter, in their body. British scientists, led by Stephen Cotton, have created "eco-glitter" by using a plant-based material instead of plastic in the production process. Sir David Attenborough - a keen campaigner against the hazards of plastic in our oceans - is supporting the non-plastic glitter.   Will it catch on? Whether it will catch on remains to be seen, as glitter is a mainstay of many sparkling Christmas window displays and of the festive period in general. Convincing businesses not to use or stock it may prove challenging. The campaign group, 38 Degrees, is calling on the government to ban the sale of glitter altogether. Glitter has been banned by the children's nursery chain, Tops Day Nurseries, because of its effects on the planet. The BBC show, Strictly Come Dancing, has also stopped using glitter. However, when a BBC poll asked people if they thought glitter should be banned, a massive 76% of respondents voted "no" and only 24% said "yes", so it may be a long time before we stop seeing traditional sparkly Christmas displays! Give your Christmas window display a head start by enhancing your shopfront. Commercial Aluminium Shopfronts provides a professional service for retailers and other businesses across a broad spectrum. Contact CAS today and let the quality of your window do some of the talking for you!

According to new data released by the Office for National Statistics, the UK economy has shrunk for the first time since 2012. The unexpected decline of 0.2% comes amid news of Brexit stockpiling in anticipation of shortages and shutdowns in the autumn. The pound sank as a result of the gloomy forecast, bringing fears of a recession. Sterling fell to $1.2025 against the dollar and to €1.0736 against the euro - a dip of 0.75%. This was its lowest level since the global financial crisis a decade ago. In addition, manufacturing output has fallen and the construction sector has weakened. © Jax10289 / Adobe Stock   Why has the economy declined? When the economy declines in two consecutive quarters, a recession occurs. This is the first time there has been a decline since the fourth quarter of 2012. It has come as a shock to economists, who had not forecast a decline, although they had expected it to remain stagnant, with 0% growth. In the first quarter, there was a 0.5% growth, although this was as a result of manufacturers and retailers stockpiling ahead of Britain's departure from the EU on 31st October, in case of a no-deal Brexit. As a result, the manufacturing sector recorded its biggest quarterly growth since the 1980s. The Office for National Statistics says the economy has been "particularly volatile" this year due to the original Brexit date of 29th March, which sparked changes in activity, even though it was eventually postponed.   Manufacturers' stockpiling Manufacturers in the UK have been stockpiling goods at a high rate, causing stocks to increase significantly, according to research by IHS Markit/CIPS. This has caused manufacturing growth to reach its highest level in 13 months. There has been a trend for increases that has continued for 32 months - significantly, since the British public voted to leave the EU in the referendum of 23rd June 2016. However, market analysts say the artificial boost is now coming crashing down as the threat of a no-deal Brexit looms ever closer. Companies in the EU are starting to source goods away from UK firms to avoid the expected chaos after 31st October. If the UK leaves the EU with no trade deal in place, a long period of uncertainty will have a detrimental effect on the manufacturing sector.   How is Europe's economy? Compared to other European economies, the pound is particularly weak, adding to the general economic woes for Britain on top of the no-deal Brexit fears. Although economic growth across Europe has slowed down, it has not gone into a significant decline in the same way that the UK economy has. In France, in the past quarter, the economy grew by 0.2%, while it grew by 0.5% in Spain. It remained stagnant in Italy and declined by 0.1% in Germany. Economists say that if the UK does leave without a trade deal in place, the pound will remain weak for "several years" after Brexit, until the country readjusts.   Analysts' forecasts The Bank of England has not indicated that it is expecting a recession. However, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell doesn't share this optimism and has described Britain's current economic figures as "dismal". The Federation of Small Businesses has called for an emergency Budget to allay industry fears of a no-deal Brexit. Business leaders say, "time is of the essence", urging the chancellor to step in with "radical action" immediately to avoid a "chaotic" autumn. Give your business a boost by ensuring your store's exterior is welcoming and appealing. For the competitive edge, invest in a shopfront that stops people in their tracks and draws them inside! Commercial Aluminium Shopfronts (CAS) supplies and installs high-quality shopfront windows for premises of all sizes. Please contact us for details of our products and services.

Some movie characters make a lasting impression the minute they appear on the screen. Over the years, there have been some positively iconic movie entrances which will never be forgotten! Whether it's a Western, a musical, or a film noir, there are some leading characters whose image will stay in your memory for the rest of your days. Read on to find out more about the greatest movie entrances of all time...   Once Upon a Time in the West Director Sergio Leone's epic spaghetti western, released in 1968, tells the tale of conflicts in the town of Flagstone in America's Old West. The main plot surrounds a land battle around plans to build a new railroad. The film's opening sequence builds up the tension for more than three minutes, as a mysterious stranger arrives in town. Three outlaws wait for him to alight from a train, in almost complete silence. It appears he hasn't arrived, but as they turn to walk away, they are stopped in their tracks by the mournful sound of a harmonica breaking the silence. The stranger, played by the legendary Charles Bronson, is a gunfighter known as Harmonica. He polishes off the three bad guys in seconds with a rapid round of gunfire. The violent western, made with a budget of $5 million and shot in the United States and Italy, was a commercial flop when it was released, barely breaking even at the box office. Yet around 40 years later, in 2009, its true brilliance was recognised when it was selected by the Library of Congress to be preserved in the US National Film Registry for its cultural and historical significance.   Gilda The 1946 film noir starred screen siren Rita Hayworth in the title role, playing the ultimate femme fatale. She was the love interest of small-time American gambler Johnny Farrell who arrived in Argentina to gamble and cheat his way into winning a lot of money. The moment when Gilda makes her entrance is a truly iconic scene. A vamp who spells bad news for the men she meets, she first appears 20 minutes into the movie. Her husband brings Johnny, his young right-hand man, to their hotel room. "Are you decent?" Gilda's husband asks. Gilda suddenly appears on screen, with a smile on her lips and a flirtatious flick of her hair, replying, “Me? Sure, I’m decent,” in a way that implies she's anything but decent. In an instant, she's seen to be a sensual seductress, after making the ultimate femme fatale entrance. The film received a positive response from the critics, who described Hayworth as "beguiling". The two-piece outfit she wore in the nightclub scene sold at auction for $161,000 in 2014, at Bonham's in New York.   The Rocky Horror Picture Show This cult 1975 movie is a musical comedy horror film. A newly-engaged couple, Brad and Janet, have car troubles on a wet, cold November night and seek help at a mysterious castle-like mansion, where a group of strange-looking people are supposedly celebrating their annual Transylvanian Convention. However, the lovebirds soon discover some rather weird goings-on, not least of which is the fact the revellers are really aliens from outer space, who are into building people out of human parts, Frankenstein-style. Their leader, Dr Frank-N-Furter, makes his spectacular entrance, descending in an open lift clad in raunchy underwear, platform shoes and a face-full of garish make-up, to the sounds of Sweet Transvestite. Brad and Janet are initially shocked, but soon find themselves swept up in the odd activities at the castle. The Rocky Horror Show was a huge hit. It was made on a low budget of $1.4 million, but made $140.2 million at the box office. It's one of the biggest cult movies of all time, with the live stage version traditionally attracting audience members in full costume, who enjoy singing along.   Pirates of the Caribbean The first movie in the franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, was released in 2003. The swashbuckling adventure introduced Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, an eccentric pirate. He saved the life of Miss Elizabeth Swann, daughter of the Governor of Port Royal, Jamaica, after she fainted and fell into the sea, almost drowning. However, his heroic act brought him under the radar of the authorities, who were eager to put an end to his pirating activities. The legendary first appearance of Captain Sparrow sees him standing majestically next to his ship's mast, his long hair blowing in the wind, as he pulls into Port Royal. However, viewers soon realise he isn't on a ship, but on a small sailing boat instead, adding a comedy element straight away. He is a lovable rogue in the first film of the franchise, whose entrance makes a lasting impression. The film was a massive hit, made on a budget of $140 million and reaping back $654.3 million at the box office. Spurred on by its massive success, a further four films were made. The character became a comedy parody of himself, rather than the swashbuckling hero of the first film, but his stylish entrance will make sure his character goes down in movie history. Making an entrance is massively important when it comes to business - Commercial Aluminium Shopfronts provides some show stopping entrances that will make your premises stand out from the crowd! Please contact us for details of our products and services - we'd love to talk to you!