Christmas is coming to Southport!
The town’s 18 metre-high, illuminated Christmas tree is due to arrive on site in the Town Hall Gardens in Southport town centre on Monday, 14th November, ready to be installed so it can bring some festive cheer for local residents, local businesses and visitors.
The Christmas tree, along with the many festive decorations throughout Southport town centre, are provided each year thanks to Southport Business Improvement District (Southport BID).
The tree and the lights are installed each year by Southport-based lighting firm IllumiDex UK Ltd.
It takes a military-style operation by a team of lighting experts mled by IllumiDex UK Ltd to ferry all the pieces of the huge tree to the town centre by wagon, before carefully assembling it.
Once installed, it will sparkle with a series of mesmerising colour-changing displays – look out for new patterns this year – thanks to 25,000 LED pixels and some clever programming.
It adds to the stunning ‘boulevard of light’ which was installed along both sides of Lord Street in 2021, with 300,000 lights giving a huge boost to the town’s night-time economy. The scheme was led by Southport BID and carried out by IllumiDex.
IllumiDex has also begun the extensive process of installing Christmas decorations throughout Southport town centre ready for the festive season to start.
And new for this year – local children have been enjoying taking part in a special Southport BID and IllumiDex competition called ‘Illustrate Illuminate’.
Youngsters have designed some very special Christmas decorations which IllumiDex are manufacturing into eight special new designs ready to appear in Southport town centre.
IllumiDex UK Ltd Director Steve Clayton said: “Christmas is coming to Southport!
“We are looking forward to putting up the big Christmas tree in the Town Hall Gardens on Monday, 14th November. It takes us 24 hours to complete the work – by Tuesday 15th November, it will be shining away!”
Putting up the Christmas tree is a huge undertaking, but one which is very much worth it with the impact it has on visitors.
Steve Clayton said: “People just see us turning up with all the equipment one day, and then the next day this huge tree is all lit up and shining away!
“We have a large team in place to ensure that everything runs smoothly. We even have a team flying over from Spain, who designed the tree, to oversee that everything is correct from their point of view. It involves months of preparation.
“We are all excited to see it back up again.
“Southport is a magical place to be at Christmas. The big tree has lots of colour, people love it.
“All the decorations in the town centre, and the lights along Lord Street, make Southport a town like no other during the festive season.
“The Christmas tree, the lights, the festive decorations, and all the special events being organised by Southport BID will all play their part in attracting thousands of people to come and enjoy Southport’s shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, hotels, guest houses and other businesses this Christmas.”
During the festive season in the town, Southport BID provides a wide range of interactive events and attractions including: a Gingerbread Trail, Santa’s Grotto, a Frozen Grotto, and much more – look out for more details on the Southport BID social media sites soon.
IllumiDex made national headlines in 2021 after lighting up both sides of the mile-long Lord Street shopping boulevard in Southport town centre – the biggest project of its kind in the UK.
The firm has also lit up other town and village centres and shopping centres, including Ocean Plaza in Southport, as well as providing outside lighting for people’s homes and gardens, and also installing eye-catching Christmas decorations inside homes and businesses.
Earlier this year, workers from the family-run firm installed 70,000 LED lights between Ainsdale Railway Station and the roundabout between Liverpool Road and Station Road in Ainsdale in Southport.
They are now preparing to put up the giant LED-lit Christmas tree and festive decorations throughout town centre, while also preparing to fulfil orders to install Christmas decorations, and lighting, at numerous local restaurants, bars, shops, hotels and homes.
Illumidex UK Ltd is a family-run company based in Southport which covers the North West.
Owners Steve and Jan Clayton have extensive qualified and hands-on experience in producing bespoke large scale festive decorations and lighting schemes.
They have worked hard to establish themselves as one of the leading festive lighting decoration manufacture and installation companies, offering a tailored and exceptional service to all of their clients, both commercial and residential.
For more details about Illumidex UK Ltd please email: info@illumidex.co.uk or call: 01704220829 (landline) or 07979158404 (mobile).