The owners of new “coach-friendly” retail store Millstores have announced they will hold a familiarisation tour for operators on 26 January 2026.
Attendees will be shown around the 13,000sq ft department store and be given a tour of the town of Cleveleys, Lancashire, where it is located.
They will be hosted at Farington Lodge Hotel in Leyland, with Walton’s Coaches of Preston providing transport on the day.
Millstores is the latest venture from entrepreneurs Simon Yates and Jonathan Addis, whose existing outlets – Ena Mill in Greater Manchester and The Courtyard in Tarleton Village near Southport – have proven popular with coach tourists.
Located between Blackpool and Fleetwood and opened in May, it features more than 10,000 product lines from brands such as Rieker Footwear, Apricot, Regatta, Tog24, and Julian Charles.
The event is part of the wider “Coach-Friendly Cleveleys” campaign, which was set up to try to bring tourist groups into the town.
According to Steve Reed Tourism, which is organising the familiarisation trip, survey results have shown widespread support for the return of coach-based tourism to the area, with businesses seeing the sector as a way of increasing midweek trade. The campaign includes downloadable guides, suggested itineraries, and contact information for group booking discounts at participating businesses.
Mr Addis says: “The build-up has been brilliant – there’s a real sense of momentum now. The coach operators will be able to see what we’re trying to build here, and hopefully they’ll see Cleveleys as a place worth coming back to, again and again.”
Millstores and organisers will gather feedback from participants in the tour in order to attract more coach groups in future.
The owners of Millstores will exhibit under their Ena Mill brand at next year’s British Tourism and Travel Show
Coach operators are asked to reserve their places at the event by emailing steve@stevereedtourism.co.uk.
