The Lexicon Launch and Bloggers Breakfast

Last Saturday I was invited along to my first bloggers breakfast, which was pretty exciting! But what made it even more exciting was the fact it was at Bill’s at The Lexicon Bracknell - a brand new shopping redevelopment in the heart of Bracknell.

Photo credit - The Lexicon

What Bracknell used to look like

The old Bracknell High Street

I used to go to Bracknell with my family when I was little, but there was never much there to do. We would go to Bentalls, have lunch in McDonalds and occasionally go bowling or to the cinema. But over the years, we’ve found better places to shop such as Camberley, Basingstoke and Reading, and so stopped heading over to Bracknell in the end. That was until last weekend, when my Mum and I drove over to enjoy breakfast and hear more about The Lexicon. The development had officially opened for business on Thursday 7^th September, when more than 150 local children from primary and junior schools across the borough counted down to the historic event. It was marked with a fanfare of green, gold and silver streamers and leaf shaped confetti, cascading across the new town centre’s walkways and squares.

But last weekend was the first weekend the centre was open, so there was still a buzz of excitement and lots to see when I went over. After parking in The Avenue car park (I would recommend parking in either this car park or one of the other council ones – High Street, Braccan Walk and Albert Road, as they are much cheaper than Princess Square) we made our way through the centre, which is all outside rather than undercover, as I thought it would be, to find Bill’s. Inside, we met the lovely PR team from The Lexicon, as well as the other bloggers that had been invited along:

·      Emily Moodie

·      Laura Summers-Bates

·      Laura Beresford

·      Sophie Rose Blumenthal

·      Rachel

·      Emma Cossey

Bill’s is one of my favourite places to go and this new restaurant is no different. With quirky but comforting decorations, I soon felt relaxed and chilled out as we ordered some breakfast.

There were so many yummy looking things on the breakfast menu, but I decided to be boring and went for some tea and toast with a variety of jams (which was still really tasty, plus they have a great gluten-free selection). One of the ladies went for this delicious looking granola sundae and my Mum chose scrambled eggs on toast, which she said were really good. While we ate, the PR, Naomi, chatted to us about The Lexicon and how we could collaborate on projects with them in the future. It is so nice that they are thinking of bloggers and how we can benefit each other.

Once we’d eaten our breakfasts, a few of us filmed interviews for the centre’s social media channels, which was good fun. We were then each given an awesome goody bag (which I will show you more of later!) and headed off to explore The Lexicon! My first stop was Cath Kidston, as my Mum wanted to treat herself to a new bag she’d had her eye on for a while. We also had a look around New Look, Boots, Superdrug, where I covered my hand in lipstick swatches, and Primark. We were told that it’s the biggest Primark in the South East, but I’m not sure how true that is because although it was pretty massive, I’m sure the Reading one is bigger. It was ridiculously busy, understandably, so I got a bit anxious, as there were so many people. I’d quite like to go back on a weekday so I can have a proper look around and go into some of the shops I didn’t manage to check out. I’d also really love to try out some more of the cafés and restaurants like Carluccio’s (when it opens in October) and Coffee Barker.

As it was their opening weekend, The Lexicon had also put on loads of entertainment. As we wandered around, we came across Vicki Sayers singing and playing guitar in Fat Face. We also found Mr Doodle drawing on a big letter ‘C’ in his doodled tracksuit, which looked pretty amazing. Other entertainment over the weekend included Forest Fairy Queens, a magician, Glitter Girls and performances from South Hill Park, Garth Hill College and Bracknell and Wokingham Community Band. There are even places around the shopping centre where you can listen to the sounds of the forest. There really was something for everyone!

There were also some amazing deals running in most of the stores. Boots were offering £5 when you spent £25, Joules had 25% off everything, Costa were giving away free coffee to the first 200 customers, KIKI had goody bags for customers spending more than £15, Smiggle gave the first 200 customers to spend £15 a free gift and Wagamama’s treated the first 100 people to free Katsu! If you missed out on these deals though, until Sunday 24^th September, Gourmet Burger Kitchen are offering customers any classic burger for just £5, which has got to be worth a trip!

Overall, my Mum and I were really impressed with The Lexicon. It is really nicely designed and I love the fact it’s open (although it might not be so fun in the pouring rain!). There are a great range of shops, restaurants and even a brand new 4DX Cineworld, which I’m very excited to try out soon. We were also told that this is just the first part of the redevelopment and that there’s more to come, so I will definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for more developments! When I got home I emptied out my goody bag and was really overwhelmed by the generosity of all the brands that had contributed. From Marks and Spencer and Boots to Bill’s, L’Occitane and Clarins, there are plenty of goodies to keep me going! My Mum and I both agreed that we will definitely be heading back for another girly trip to The Lexicon soon.

Are you from the Bracknell area? What do you think of The Lexicon and all it has to offer?

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