RISE HITS THE ROAD

Rise, the independent music, film and book shop based in Cheltenham’s Beechwood shopping centre, will taking the store ‘on the road’ at this year’s Cheltenham Jazz Festival at the end of April for which organisers promise some of the finest artists of the genre from around the world.

The festival runs from April 27 to May 2 at various venues around the town and it has already been announced that Jamie Cullum will be among those making a return visit this year.

Rise has three shops – one in Cheltenham, a second in Bristol and a third based in the Arts Centre at the University of Warwick – and the Beechwood  store manager Ben Hughes said he and his staff are delighted to have been invited to work with the festival this year where they will be selling a wide variety of jazz CDs as well as hosting signings by some of the various performing artists.

Rise opened in Beechwood at the end of 2007 and has rapidly grown in popularity and won several accolades at the Centre’s own awards ceremony at the end of 2010 including Best Independent Retailer, Best Contribution to Marketing/Promotions and the night’s main trophy of Beechwood’s Retailer of the Year.

The store also attracted Danny Jones and Tom Fletcher from the Brit Award-winning band McFly when more than 250 girls, some queueing from early morning, turned up to receive signed copies of the boy band’s single, Shine a Light.

Rise has also launched its mail order internet site offering more than 20,000 music titles on CD and vinyl as well as a selected complimentary range of DVDs and books.

The site has been created as a mirror image of the shop and the front page has a selection of campaigns and offers from new and forthcoming titles as well as a selection of back catalogue offers. The site contains a blog and events diary which keeps the customers involved with activity at Rise. Unsigned acts and budding writers are also encouraged to get Involved by providing reviews and distribution of their music.