A NINE-YEAR-OLD Ysgol Dewi Sant pupil was the happy winner of a competition which ran alongside Llanelli town centre’s recent yarn-bombing extravaganza.
The yarn-bombing fortnight, courtesy of local knitting group crafty seniors, saw a variety of hand-crafted bunting, bollard covers and other items dressing u the centre of Llanelli courtesy of local knitting group Crafty Seniors. The decoration was such a hit for the town that it is expected to become an annual event.
Over the fortnight nine hand-made sheep were dotted around various shops and a ‘sheep search’ competition was run courtesy of the Wilkinson’s Store, which saw the winner receive a hamper full of back to school goodies worth £25.
The sheep were placed in Blodau Elli, The Fragrance Shop, Beauty 2 Bubbles, On Your Own Bike, British Heart Foundation, The Works, Garrett’s Fresh Seafood and Llanelli Town Council.
The Herald was invited to meet with local nine year old winner Cari Davies on Wednesday (Sept 20) as she received her prize. There were smiles all-round as Cari, her Mother Jane Davies, Andrew Stephens (Manager at the St Elli Shopping Centre), Mandy Jenkins (Ymlaen; The BID Project Manager), Tony (Wilko’s Store Manager) and a member of staff posed for a group photograph.
Cari told The Herald that she had been in town with her mother getting her bicycle fixed when she heard about the competition: “The lady in the bike shop told us about the ‘search’ for the sheep and gave us a leaflet with the questionnaire to complete. I loved all of the colours on the sheep and town looked so pretty.
“We had a phone call to say that I’d won the competition, I felt so excited. I didn’t tell my Mum until the evening when she got home that I’d won. I’m allowed to take my hamper into ‘show and tell’ on Monday to show all of my friends.”
Jane, Cari’s mother, added: “I thought that the competition ran was a good way to get to know the local shops and businesses. We live locally and weren’t that aware of the businesses taking part. We are aware now though and it’s been a good way to promote them. Everyone was helpful and it’s a productive way of boosting local business.”
Andrew Stephens (Manager at the St Elli Shopping Centre) said: ”It was a great competition from Wilko’s, and I was thankful for the donation of prizes. It was wonderful to see families walking around the town and working together, no doubt going into shops which they might not have normally visited.
“The benefit is that those shops are the ones that we’re promoting, we’re promoting town centre businesses, especially independents. To see people coming to town to support them is so positive. There was a lot of positive feedback with regards to the yarn bombing.
“Crafty Seniors has had an increase in avid knitters I’ve been told, people are happy to get involved.”
Tony Edwards, Manager at Wilko’s Llanelli store, said: “The competition went well and I feel that it drew people into town. There are a lot of stores moving over to Trostre, it’s about getting people back into the town and making it the heart of Llanelli once again. The feedback was good and we’re hoping to build on that next year with another competition. There’ll be competitions every month in the run-up to Christmas. Andrew and Mandy are working hard to bring people into the town which can only be a good thing.”
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