Centrale Shopping Centre has given an early Christmas present this week – nearly £8,000 in fundraising to Breast Cancer Care. Although it is a sad fact that 1 in 3 women will be affected by breast cancer at some point in their lives, new treatments and improved medical care mean survival rates have improved. Early detection however, is a key force in the fight against breast cancer, which is why Centrale – following the success of their Easter Style Live event - hosted a whole fortnight of activities in aid of Breast Cancer Awareness month[1 ] this October.

“I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who got involved with the Style Live Pink event,” comments Rebecca Smith, Area Fundraiser at Breast Cancer Care. “120 people are diagnosed with breast cancer every day so the demand for our free services is greater than ever. We couldn’t help so many people if it wasn’t for the hard work and generosity of people like the Centrale Shopping Centre management team and their customers. Thank you to everyone who donated - your efforts have made a real difference to the lives of people affected by breast cancer.”

Many of Centrale’s retailers, including Next, Boots, Debenhams and Sony, sold products with a percentage of sales being donated directly to breast cancer charities. Staff at the centre also entered into the theme by dressing in pink. Centrale provided entertainment for all with shoe shine tap dancers, face painters, balloonists, walk about pink characters and chorus girls – and Centrale staff urged shoppers to donate their spare change to charity buckets. In addition to the fundraising fun expert advisors from Croydon Primary Care Trust were available to speak to women concerned about breast cancer.

Style Live Pink culminated in a fantastic 3-day fashion spectacular and Croydon shoppers were treated to exclusive previews of the new season’s fashions for men, women and kids with fun-filled catwalk shows running all day. The shows were hosted by celebrity hairdresser Andrew Barton (star of 10 Years Younger and winner of the coveted title of UK’s Most Wanted Hair Icon ) and top stylist Mark Heyes (fashion correspondent for GM:TV ). They also gave free one-to-one demonstrations, offering expert advice in their ‘hair’ and ‘style’ lounges.