The understated Cheshire town with a big heart – things to love about Handforth

You may or may not have heard of the Cheshire town Handforth from award winning restaurants (press release secured by Icon), a retail park, luxury car showrooms and let’s not forget Julie’s infamous iPad! It’s easy to see why Handforth is becoming an increasingly popular location with homeowners. The benefits don’t end there Handforth is within throwing distance of Manchester Airport (taxis to the airport cost around £16) but not on the flight path and well connected for commuters due to it’s excellent links via the A555 and A34 as well as bus and train services, outstanding schools and surrounded by beautiful countryside walks including secret cut throughs to Stanley Green, Styal and Handforth Dean (if you know you know!)

Handforth Map Supplied by Handforth Town Council

Just a mile and a half from the cosmopolitan town of Wilmslow but significantly more affordable you can snap up a property in Handforth for as little as £175k;

“House prices in Handforth have an overall average of £345,613 over the last year. The majority of properties sold in Handforth during the last year were terraced properties, selling for an average price of £354,450. Flats sold for an average of £174,385, with detached properties fetching £506,129.”

The Grange, Clay Lane Supplied by Handforth Town Council

With plans for a Garden Village in the pipeline and the new Anwyl Homes and Jones Homes developments Handforth is seeing an influx of homeowners and is set to become a destination of choice for first time buyers, families and downsizers alike. So what prompted us to write this blog? A social media video recently painted a less than favourable picture of Handforth describing it as a “snide Wilmslow” and we felt compelled to set the record straight. You can see the video here WARNING: contains graphic language . Our MD Kiesha Humphreys moved to Handforth around 6 years ago. Lured by the competitively priced properties she chose to move her family and business to Handforth to purchase her forever home and it’s fair to say she’s fallen in love with the charm of this once maligned village.

“There’s so much to like about Handforth, with a great selection of pubs and restaurants, shops and takeaways it was a no-brainer to move to Handforth. When we were house hunting a homeowner told us how she used to be a Wilmslow snob before moving to Handforth. My two boys used to love going for rides on the miniature railway in Meriton Park on a Sunday when they were  younger and everyone is so friendly. I can still dip into Wilmslow when I need to but I simply LOVE living in Handforth”.

Handforth Miniature Railway Credit: Handforth Miniature Railway Facebook Page

There’s plenty to do for younger residents too with a weekly youth club, scouts, regular events at Handforth library and a skatepark. The community spirit is in abundance during events such as Halloween, Bonfire night and Christmas carols in the paddock. Handforth has many established businesses such as Second Opinion which has been a regular fixture in Handforth since the early 80s. Their beautiful salon has recently undergone a full refurbishment confirming their commitment to Handforth.

We’d be remiss not to mention the newly opened Marguerite Patisserie Handforth’s newest coffee shop. Replacing Woods paper shop which ended it’s lengthy tenure due to retirement. Marguerite is an Instagrammers dream. Think delicious baked goods, coffee and ice-cream available to eat-in or takeout. Simply beautiful and cosy you’ll love it!

Marguerite Patisserie Credit: Marguerite Facebook Page

This only scratches the surface of all the great things to see and do in Handforth but we must give Shentons Farm Shop a special mention who upped the ante during COVID keeping the people of Handforth and surrounding areas well served for eggs, fruit, veg and more.

Intrigued? Why not pay Handforth a visit? Whether you’re looking to get pampered, go for a meal or some retail therapy Handforth has it all. If you’d like to share your love of Handforth or discuss business in one of Handforth's many coffee shops we’d be happy to have a chat simply complete the callback form and we’ll be in touch.

Top Marketing Trends to Watch in 2025

With the marketing landscape constantly evolving and customer needs ever-changing, it can be hard to keep track of the latest trends or even predict future ones. The rise of digital marketing has allowed companies to think of new ways to reach more potential customers than ever before.

 So how can I know what to target as a marketer?

Don’t worry, we have you covered. We’ve assembled a list of some pretty good guesses (we think) for some of the most eye-catching marketing trends to watch in 2025 based on what’s already begun to have an impact and doesn’t show signs of slowing down any time soon.

1.      Short-form video content

You may have heard talk of the 8-second attention span of Gen Z, where the rise of short-form video content on platforms like TikTok, YouTube and Instagram has seemingly diminished young people’s ability to focus on clips for more than a mere few seconds before deciding to scroll to the next one. Whether that’s universally true or not remains up for debate, but certainly the popularity of the ‘TikTok format’ and other platforms following the app’s lead has made way for interesting conversation about how this affects advertising and what marketers can do to combat this new challenge of condensing ideas to a minimum and attracting audiences right off the bat.

TikTok has grown extremely popular after merging with Musical.ly, now promoting the creation of all kinds of short-form content and not just the lip-singing and dancing videos that users had been used to originally. TikTok did it first, with the newer YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels hopping on the bandwagon of the app’s success.

For anyone advertising, TikTok has become and continues to be, an exciting new way to go about grabbing peoples’ attention via short video clips either posted on creators’ accounts or through promoting your business on users’ feeds, using targeted ads that appear every few scrolls. In this way, it is vital to be creative about how you advertise on TikTok – you need to be able to surprise and interest consumers with what you say or display within a few seconds, such as utilising trends that circulate the app and collaborating with beloved creators.

2.     AI

Yes, a lot of people think AI is taking over our jobs. But its rise (and the inevitable continuation of it) has shown that it’s more plausible to say that AI is just changing the way we do things. Many businesses can and have used it to optimise marketing strategies and the truth is that ignoring it and not adapting is what is more likely to have negative consequences.

ChatGPT is what seems to be making the headlines in AI developments, but there’s also more to be acknowledged.

The use of chatbots on businesses’ websites has become a notable component of marketing strategies, offering visitors the chance to type messages to an AI assistant, answering their questions and directing them to products and services quicker than before.

AI is now helping businesses discover the best influencers to use for their campaigns, analysing post engagement and predicting campaigns that will be most effective with influencers.

Visual searches are also on the rise, with Google Lens and Snapchat’s Scan feature allowing for an integrated shopping experience when users take photographs of objects that can be recognised as products to buy online.

But what about the role of the human in all of this? Whilst these AI tools help speed up the marketing process and provide recommendations, they are not perfect and need human oversight to correct mistakes. Marketers also know and understand their clients best to tailor products and services to their needs. Marketing agencies especially need to maintain a human-to-human contact approach.

3.     Social commerce

Social media platforms and businesses are finding more ways to promote products and services directly on social media. For example, TikTok Shop allows a more integrated experience by allowing users to find products to buy via its ‘shop’ tab. Additionally, Pinterest is continuing to attract users who are searching for ideas, offering shoppable pins and video content to drive conversions.

Businesses recognise the exciting potential for driving sales on social media platforms but need to make sure that their attempts feel authentic and engaging, as users are wise to when something feels obviously promoted. The use of storytelling can be an effective way of showing to users that you, or people advertising your product, are relatable and understand their needs.

4.    Advertising on streaming services

In an age of streaming, consumers are ditching network television and companies are spending money on ads elsewhere such as Netflix and YouTube.

With audiences wanting to watch more quality content but aren’t willing to pay an arm and a leg for higher-tier subscriptions, streaming services like Netflix have found a successful middle ground where users opt for a basic ad-supported subscription. Many find this alternative to be tolerable, being able to watch the shows and films they love at a reduced cost, but with occasional adverts.

YouTube has been found to not only deliver better ad recall and attraction from viewers compared to traditional TV advertising but also a broader reach among adults, prompting advertisers to diversify their campaigns.

Conclusion

Navigating the world of trends can be a scary place, which is why it’s more important than ever to stay alert as a marketer for anything that makes the news and sparks a lot of conversation as you never know what it might lead to and whether you could use it to improve your strategy. At Icon, we keep an eye on the industry and use our knowledge to create a bespoke service that suits your needs and what’s best for your business.

If you need marketing support, we would love to hear from you – contact us today at kiesha@iconmarketingcommunications.co.uk.