Bluewater is hosting collection of pop-up retailers this spring to celebrate the Best of Kent, including Faversham’s Macknade Fine Foods and Leeds Castle

Organised in conjunction with Visit Kent and Produced in Kent, four Kent-based businesses have taken a pop-up each from 1 April to 4 May in a variety of locations within Bluewater.

Macknade Fine Foods – 1,700 sq ft pop-up on the lower Rose Gallery. Macknade Fine Foods is the South East’s leading food hall, built on a 170-year history of food, farming and retailing in Faversham. It stocks over 120 suppliers from Kent, with produce including cheese, groceries and beverages, and is hosting tasting sessions throughout its residency at Bluewater. Macknade was recently named the Best Local Retailer 2015 at the Taste of Kent awards for the second year running

Creative Foundation – an independent arts charity from Folkestone, Creative Foundation’s aim is to transform the town through art, highlighting Folkestone’s Creative Quarter in particular. The pop-up at Bluewater, a 1,500 sq ft store on the upper Rose Gallery, is hosting a series of artists and makers, workshops and demonstrations

Experience Leeds Castle – 1,300 sq ft experiential store on the lower Thames Walk. The pop-up provides Bluewater’s guests with the opportunity to discover ‘the loveliest castle in the world’, with expert talks on the castle’s 900-year history throughout each day. Guests can also try medieval stocks and meet ‘Frank the Clank’

The Wooden Spoon – celebrating its 40th year, The Wooden Spoon is a leading local producer of preserves that operates from a converted traditional Kent Oast house, The Wooden Spoon has a 2,000 sq ft unit on the upper Rose Gallery. In addition to selling preserves, the store serves Bluewater’s guests Kentish Afternoon Tea

Commenting on the pop-ups, Robert Goodman, Bluewater’s General Manager, said: “Bluewater’s Best of Kent pop-ups are another example of our focus on providing something different for guests on every visit. Each of the four adds to the overall Bluewater experience and they have all been very popular with our guests already.

“As importantly, we are delighted to be showcasing such great local businesses and products, providing them with high visibility at such a popular time of the year at Bluewater.”

Sally Roger of Visit Kent, added: “Best of Kent is a great initiative and one we were delighted to help Bluewater deliver. Each of the four pop-ups offers something very exciting and unexpected for Bluewater’s guests, and in return benefits from the significant profile Bluewater enjoys throughout the South East and London.”

The Best of Kent initiative is the latest in a series of innovative pop-ups to appear at Bluewater. Brands such as Tesla, Volvo and the Science Museum have all created highly successful brand experience stores at Bluewater in the last 12 months.

For more information on exciting events and activities at Bluewater, visit www.bluewater.co.uk