Store Managers Take On Great Birmingham 10K In Style
Two Birmingham businessmen will be the sharpest runners at the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10K start-line – but they don’t expect to trouser winners’ medals!
Moss Bros. store manager Dave Singh and deputy store manager Tony Sawyers are celebrating the fact this year’s route will take participants through the historic heart of Birmingham city centre for the first time – and right past their New Street front door – by running the event in sartorial style.
Dave, 59, will measure up for the Sunday, May 26 challenge in a tuxedo while Tony, 42, will run in a two-piece from the suit and formal menswear specialists’ wedding range.
Moss Bros. is among scores of Brum businesses and landmarks that will line this year’s 6.2-mile route.
In another first for the Great Birmingham 10K, there will be two Colmore Row start-lines, either side of its junction with Bennetts Hill.
The route will head down Bennetts Hill and turn left onto New Street, crossing Corporation Street alongside the Apple store, the stunning grade II-listed building built in 1869 as the head office of the Midland Bank. After passing the Rotunda and Bullring Bull, runners will be greeted by the world’s biggest Primark store on High Street.
Dave and Tony are tailor-made for success in the best-dressed entrants’ category but expect to be several hundred trouser lengths away from a tie with the race leaders!
“Let’s just hope it’s not as hot as last year,” quipped Dave. “The only time I’ve ever ran in a suit is to catch a bus! The best suit to run in – if such a thing exists – hasn’t come into our thinking. We’ve just chosen what we like to wear from our Moss Hires range. It’s more about style than practicality!
“The fact the route is coming through the heart of the retail area for the first time is fantastic, as the city has so much to offer and look forward to.
“With the Commonwealth Games on the way, everyone doing the 10k will be able to see all the development work, both in the city centre and on the way out to Perry Barr. Now that the world’s biggest Primark has joined so many other great stores, London’s Oxford Street must be feeling second best!”
With Dave and Tony being joined at the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10K by Moss Bros. hire manager Leonie Foulks and sales assistant Sarah Gee, the store will be entering the event’s Business Challenge, which pits corporate teams of at least four runners against each other for fastest-time trophies in small, medium or large business categories.
Coffee shops and stores will be open for business along the city centre streets hosting the 10K, making it a great opportunity for spectators to spend Bank Holiday Weekend in the Second City while cheering on friends and family.
Participants will also go past Birmingham Children’s Hospital before continuing along the A34, where bands and live music will motivate those taking part, and a grandstand finish back in the city centre at Aston University.
Steve Hewlett, Manager of Retail BID, the Business Improvement District for the city centre retail area, said: “We are delighted the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10K is coming through the main streets in the city centre for the first time. Dave and Tony will certainly look the part and I’d encourage other businesses to ‘follow suit’ by running or walking in outfits that promote the best their stores and shops have to offer.
“It will be an ideal viewing point along New Street and High Street for families and friends and all the coffee shops and places for breakfast will be open as well.”
More than 8,000 participants signed up for last year’s 10K, making it the biggest to date. Some 350 of the participants walked the route and even more are expected to join the Walking Wave this year.
Anyone who enters the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10K will receive £10 off their entry fee for the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham Run half marathon, which takes place on Sunday, October 13, 2019.
To enter the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham Run click here
To find out how to sign up an office team for the Business Challenge click here
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