Town centre firms in High Wycombe will have the chance to attract and retain customers, and "become better informed" as the economy becomes increasingly competitive, with a series of training workshops this month.

Organised by HWBIDCo, the workshops, part of the company’s business week initiative, will teach businesses the principles of effective merchandising and product displays, and what makes good customer service.

It will also offer dementia champion training, delivered by NHS Commissioning.

An HWBIDCo spokesman said: “HWBIDCo has long campaigned for local businesses to be better informed and to take every opportunity to upskill their employees as the economy becomes increasingly competitive.

“As a trial exercise, it has taken the lead in bringing together a number of training workshops and some relevant consultations in one convenient “Business Week”, during January, for the benefit of town centre businesses in High Wycombe.”

Graham Hill, of Shopper Anonymous, who will deliver the customer service training, said: “We know how powerful good customer service can be. It’s often the difference between losing and making a sale and can encourage customers to recommend your business to others.

“The first ten people to register for our session will receive a complimentary mystery shop on their business to give them a snapshot view of the customer service that they offer.”

HWBIDCo is also working with Bucks New University for two of the sessions in the week. Head of the school of management and professional studies, Phil Wood, will talk about cyber security in one of the sessions, and pro-vice chancellor, Professor Tim Middleton, will host a session with town centre businesses to discuss the future of the town’s economy.

Oliver O’Dell, chief executive at HWBIDCo, said: “Whilst there are a number of county-wide initiatives, we wanted to put together something specific to High Wycombe and something that has more of a town centre bias.

“At this stage, Business Week is a trial to gauge business interest locally but it has the scope to build into a substantial annual event which could also see us mentor other centres in Buckinghamshire.

“We are delighted to be able to access the skills and expertise of Bucks New University and hope that this will create some interesting spin-off activities throughout the year.”

For more information, or to book a space, go to www.hwbidco.co.uk.