DESIGNED TO ATTRACT ATTENTION – ASHFORD OUTLET JOINS KENT CONTEMPORARY POSTER CAMPAIGN

Visit Kent has unveiled the third and final image to feature in this year’s Kent Contemporary poster campaign promoting the county as a destination to visitors and residents in London and on key transport routes across the South East.

The eye-catching new image of the Ashford Designer Outlet, with the caption “Up to 60% off designer brands in your Garden”, joins zebras from Port Lympne, near Hythe, and Bluewater, Greenhithe, in the 2013 poster collection.

Stunning images of the Garden of England with a 21st century twist have become a familiar site across the capital and on trains since the Kent Contemporary campaign was first launched.

The first series of posters, launched in 2010, featured: chalk stacks at Botany Bay Broadstairs; the Goods Shed, Canterbury; The Creative Quarter, Folkestone; lavender fields, near Sevenoaks; kitesurfing at Greatstone; and a tepee in the grounds of Wallett’s Court, Westcliffe.

The second Kent Contemporary series in 2011 included The Historic Dockyard Chatham, the Plough Inn, near Sittingbourne, and Dover Castle. Meanwhile, 2012 saw the unveiling of a new image of Turner Contemporary, Margate.

Lynnette Crisp, head of marketing at Visit Kent, said: “The success of our Kent Contemporary campaign just continues to grow.

“We achieved a return of investment of 49:1 in the first year and 65:1 in the second. Last year the campaign generating 304,098 visitor nights and 310,589 day trips worth £15 million.

“We are not only attracting more visitors to Kent from across London. Our research shows that Kent residents are also inspired by the images and heading out to explore other parts of their own county.”