ST ALBANS shopping centre Christopher Place has launched a unique hunt for local shoppers to feature in its promotional hoardings and advertisements.

The centre has teamed up with the Herts Advertiser to run the Face of the Place, a model competition with a difference. Instead of anonymous professional models on promotion material, Christopher Place is looking to showcase the cream of local talent, with real centre customers featuring on their posters and website.

The winners will be invited to attend a makeover by centre retailers Space NK and hair styling by Greys Hair and Body and Wacky Barbers, and will be dressed in clothes from Christopher Place stores for a special photo shoot.

Their photos will then be used on the large posters throughout Christopher Place and other publicity material. Winners will receive a digital copy of their picture and a goody bag supplied by centre retailers including Cuthberts and Shoon.

There will be six categories for the Face of the Place competition, each delivering one ultimate winner:

1. Baby/Child (0-5 years) with mother;

2. Baby/Child (0-5 years) with father;

3. Woman aged between 20 and 40 years;

4. Man aged between 20 and 40 years;

5. Woman aged 40 years plus;

6. Man aged 40 years plus.

Centre manager Catherine Morris said: “We at Christopher Place Shopping Centre are delighted to launch the Face of the Place competition, as an opportunity to work even more closely with the residents in our own community.

“We hope that readers of the Herts Advertiser will see the fun and participate in this competition, for the chance to become one of the faces of Christopher Place this summer. Christopher Place is here for the people in the local area, we want to make it all about them too.”

Herts Advertiser editor Matt Adams said: “This is an exciting opportunity for the local community to get involved with their shopping centre, by taking part in a campaign where they can be the stars, instead of a nameless model who might never have been to St Albans, let alone Christopher Place.

“The winners will be able to enjoy a bit of pampering and then sit back and enjoy the stardom as their posters are positioned within the centre and online for family and friends to see.

“For once, visitors to Christopher Place might well see the models of the Face of the Place campaign actually shopping at the centre!”

All you have to do to enter the competition is send in a suitable photo together with your name, address, phone number, email and date of birth, and a short statement of no more than 30 words explaining why you think you should be the Face of the Place. Children can only be entered by their parent or legal guardian.

Entries should be sent to: Face of the Place Competition, Herts Advertiser, Town Hall Chambers, 35 Market Place, St Albans, AL3 5DL, or dropped in manually to the Christopher Place Centre Management Office at 12 Upper Dagnall Street, St Albans, or to Tomoka Spirits Boutique in the centre.

You can also send entries via email to hertsad@archant.co.uk. Please put Face of the Place as the subject and send JPEG attachments of no more than 1MB in size.

The closing date for entries is 12noon on Friday, June 21, and the winners will be chosen by a panel of judges made up of representatives from Christopher Place retailers.

Terms and conditions

You must not enter on behalf of someone else, unless you are the parent or guardian applying on behalf of the minor you are legally responsible for. Any entries received may be published within the Herts Advertiser.

A single winning entry will be selected from each category and will be notified by telephone and in writing (email or post).

The judges’ decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered into.

All winners must be available to attend a photo shoot on Saturday, July 6 2013. Hair and make up will be undertaken courtesy of Christopher Place specialist retailers and all clothing will be supplied on loan for the photo shoot.

All winners must complete a model release form. The photographs will be printed in the Herts Advertiser and appear within Christopher Place advertising campaign, including printed material, in centre and online advertising.

Prize will include the photographs on disc and a selection of goodies from centre retailers. No cash payment will be made to the winners and the photography rights remain those of Christopher Place Shopping Centre.

Winners’ photographs will be released on disc after they have been published in the Herts Advertiser and unveiled in the Christopher Place poster sites.