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Invest Edinburgh Blog...

Blogging about city development, business and economic issues around the Edinburgh city region.

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  • The 173rd Royal Highland Show kicks off at Ingliston this Thursday (June 20-23)., Monday June 17 2013

    The 173rd Royal Highland Show kicks off at Ingliston this Thursday (June 20-23). Stephen Hutt, Chief Executive of the the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS), gives us a taster of the main attractions…

     

    What are the key highlights of this year's show?

    It looks like it’s going to be pretty full this year, with something for every taste and pocket. You’ll see the things you’d expect to see, but also some added extras, like a medieval village created by the Clanranald Trust for Scotland where you can step back in time. We also have a full music programme with bands across from the United States, and a full programme of both show jumping and horse displays. There’ll be just over 6,000 livestock in total, 3,000 horses and ponies, 1,000 trade stands and a host of other entertainment including outdoor sports, food and drink exhibitions and craft pavillions.

    Why is the Royal Highland Show important for Edinburgh?

    We’ve averaged 175,000 visitors a year over the last five years and see a significant amount of business being done at the show in terms of agri equipment and livestock. It also has an impact on tourism in terms of the bed nights it pulls in. Edinburgh is seen as the Festival City and the Royal Highland Show is a festival of food, farming and countryside. The show itself is worth over £70m to Scotland. We’ve got 60% of Scotland’s population within one hour’s drive of our location here at Ingliston; we’ve got good road and rail networks – and once the tram starts running out of Edinburgh to the airport, it will be even easier for people to get here.

    What is your role and which aspects do you enjoy the most?

    My role as chief executive of RHASS covers the Royal Highland Show, but also the society’s commercial arm, Highland Centre Ltd. This runs our exhibition halls, which host over 200 events a year attracting more than 1m visitors. The society also has a strong educational role through the Royal Highland Education Trust, which works with Scottish schools to teach schoolchildren about the issues surrounding food, farming and the countryside. My role is essentially to keep the business relevant and make sure we’ve got a sound financial footing to do all the charity work that we have to do. The aspect I enjoy most is just the incredible variety of the things we get involved in.

    What is your vision for the show?

    Last year the Royal Highland Show was voted the UK’s best agricultural event and I want to maintain that. But I also want to expand and develop so we’re reaching the wider population and are known not just for agriculture, but for being a great day out and good value for money. The showground itself is spread over 110 acres and takes a while to get round. There’s just a huge amount to see and most people who come to the show say one day is not enough.

    Facebook: www.facebook.com/royalhighlandshow

    Twitter: @ScotlandRHShow

  • The Creative Exchange, a new incubator and workspace for creative and digital media businesses, is opened today, Monday June 10 2013

    The Creative Exchange, a new incubator and workspace for creative and digital media businesses, is opened today by the City of Edinburgh Council. Mark Gorman, Chairman of Creative Edinburgh, tells us more…

    What is the Creative Exchange?

    The Creative Exchange is a new business incubator and workspace for creative industries companies based at the Leith Corn Exchange building, 29 Constitution Street, Leith. Originally built in 1861 as a marketing hall, Leith Corn Exchange building has housed a variety of functions in its lifetime and now exists as an award winning, stunning and contemporary office accommodation.

    The space available comprises open plan accommodation planned over ground, 1st and mezzanine levels. It has offices, meeting rooms, gallery space, and it's being wired up for the latest state of the art broadband technology. There’ll be superfast broadband initially (c. 24Mbps), with plans for ultrafast (c.100Mbps) fibre optic broadband later in the year.

    There are a variety of packages you can take out as a member for fixed desk space and hotdesking, for example weekends or evenings only. The important thing is all the extras that come with it, including a good security system and your own locker. Edinburgh has been crying out for something like this. It is happening at places like TechCube in Summerhall, but the Creative Exchange is different in being a completely dedicated creative industries incubator. Leith has traditionally been regarded as an IT and media hub, but the significant development the area has seen over recent years has extended its appeal to many other occupiers including Cisco Systems, Ipsos MORI, VisitScotland and The Scottish Government.

    What has inspired it?

    It has been inspired by the success of the City of Edinburgh Council’s creative industries economic development strategy. This involves three workstreams around the themes of ‘People, Place and Pound’ to develop skills, facilities and funding from both private and public sector sources to grow the city’s creative industries sector. Creative Edinburgh is at the core of this strategy and represents the ‘People’ theme. Our aim is to create living and breathing networks where random collisions can happen of a positive nature. We’ve now got over 700 members and 3,500 people following us on Twitter, so we’ve started really quite a strong network. The council see that they also need to invest in the physical intrastructure supporting the creative industries, and that’s what the Creative Exchange is about.

    Who will be involved?

    The City of Edinburgh Council have led and are part-funding the project with Creative Scotland. Edinburgh College is also a partner. Funding for the ultrafast fibre optic broadband will be coming from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's Urban Broadband Fund, which aims to create 10 super-connected cities across the UK. Creative Edinburgh will be taking two desks in the Creative Exchange so will have a permanent presence there. Specialist business incubation support will be available through delivery and investor partners. Sir Tom Farmer and other special invited guests will officially open the Creative Exchange on Thursday 11 July.

    What's the vision?

    The vision is to help grow and strengthen Edinburgh’s creative industries sector, which has an estimated 4,000 businesses supporting 26,000 people. The potential for growth is huge – and providing the tailored business support and technology these businesses need is key. The Creative Exchange will provide a really vibrant creative hub where Edinburgh’s creative industries can find a foothold to get going.

  • New hotel group, Sleeperz Hotels, expanding into Edinburgh after acquiring Travelodge hotel on Shandwick Place, Monday May 20 2013

    A new hotel group, Sleeperz Hotels, is expanding into Edinburgh after acquiring the 73-bedroom Travelodge hotel on Edinburgh's Shandwick Place. David Myers, Chief Executive of Sleeperz Hotels, tells us more…

    What is Sleeperz?

    Sleeperz Hotels is a new and innovative UK budget hotel operator specialising in design-led premium budget hotels near mainline rail stations in busy city centres. We are headquartered in Euston, London, and opened our first hotel in Cardiff in 2008. We expanded into Newcastle in 2012 and are now launching a new sister brand called Cityroomz – with our first property opening in Edinburgh’s Shandwick Place this month. We employ around 50 staff across our three hotels and a small HQ of five. The budget hotel sector is the fastest growing in the UK hospitality industry with more consumers keen to secure a comfortable stay at competitive prices.

    Why are you coming to Edinburgh?

    Edinburgh is one of the world’s truly great cities. It’s Scotland’s cultural capital, sustaining a thriving and resilient tourism industry, and is the beating heart of business and politics north of the border. The launch of a new rooms-based sister brand is a bold and exciting move for a young business like Sleeperz. We acquired the site of a former Travelodge for Cityroomz Edinburgh around two months ago and have invested £500,000 refurbishing and renovating the interior, creating a new breakfast room and upgrading fixtures and fittings including new beds and bespoke mattresses and free and fast wifi. The fact that it is one of the best locations in Edinburgh, at the end of Princes Street, is a tremendous opportunity. Shandwick Place is also strategically significant being so close to conferencing venues, leisure attractions and the developing tram network.

    What kind of roles/skills are you recruiting?

    We’re recruiting for a range of roles in Edinburgh, from hotel management and operations to housekeeping staff. Our company ethos is to provide a warm, friendly and personal service and so we are looking for people with engaging personalities who enjoy service and being around the public. A career with Sleeperz is dynamic because our staff are involved in every role in a modern hotel, giving them a more rounded experience of the hospitality industry.

    What's your vision for Edinburgh/Scotland?

    Our vision is that Cityroomz Edinburgh sets the pace for a determined expansion of both Sleeperz Hotels and Cityroomz. We recently secured a 121-room agreement to lease a hotel in Glasgow city centre and look forward to welcoming guests to stay with us in Scotland’s two major cities. We are looking out for another site in Edinburgh and one in Aberdeen. We feel that Sleeperz and Cityroomz is the right product at the right price for today’s leisure tourist and business traveller.

    For more: www.sleeperz.com and www.cityroomz.com

  • Venture capital firm Rock Spring Ventures has opened a new £50m life sciences and health technology fund in Edinburgh, Monday March 18 2013

    Venture capital firm Rock Spring Ventures has opened a new £50m life sciences and health technology fund in Edinburgh. We spoke to Managing Partner Sinclair Dunlop...

    What will the fund do?

    It will provide early stage growth capital to the most exciting new health technology companies coming out of Scotland’s universities.

    How are things going?

    The real update is that we’re now beginning to work very closely with our university partners (Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen) and have started looking at a shortlist of very exciting new technologies. We’re now beginning the due diligence process on these and expect to make our first investment later in the year.

    What’s your own background?

    This is my fourth early stage venture fund. I’ve been doing early stage company building for more than 15 years, always with a focus on new technologies and always in the healthcare, life sciences and biotech area. We’re looking for the next big breakthrough, for disruptrive technology that has the potential to have a big impact on health and patient care. We like the idea of a geographic market which has a world-class science base and world-class universities but lacks early stage capital. I have an MBA from Columbia Business School in New York and prior to that a degree in economics from Glasgow University.

    Why did you decide to base the fund in Edinburgh?

    We think the Scottish market has huge potential in terms of the quality of its universities and the quality of the life sciences research here. We wanted to establish a very strong Scottish presence and Edinburgh is the logical location to do that. Edinburgh is where a lot of high quality university research and life sciences work also meets the financial services sector, so in a Scottish context it’s the ideal place to be.

    What excites you most about the potential you've seen so far?

    We believe the science exists in Scotland for having a huge impact on patients’ lives and potentially even cures for certain diseases. We think the science here in Scotland just needs to be combined with better access to early stage capital. If we can bring one, the high quality science, together with two, the risk capital, we think we’re onto a winner.

     

  • Edinburgh Airport is now offering more than 130 routes after unveiling new easyJet flights to London Southend Airport, Monday March 04 2013

    Edinburgh Airport is offering Scottish passengers more than 130 routes this year after unveiling a number of new services, including new easyJet flights to London Southend Airport. The airport’s Head of Communications, Gordon Robertson, explains more…

    How significant is the new easyJet link to London Southend?

    It means that Edinburgh now has connections to all six London airports. This will give our business passengers even greater flexibility on how they travel to London and provide all passengers with fast access to the city of London and the surrounding area. Flights between Edinburgh and Southend will operate six days a week, year round, from 2 May 2013.

    What other routes are planned and why are these important?

    2013 will be an exciting year for Edinburgh airport with several new services in the pipeline. A key airport strategy is to provide our passengers with more choice of airlines and destinations and in 2013 we will be offering more choice than ever before with direct flights to global destinations as well as greater access to major airline networks via hubs like Heathrow, Toronto and Istanbul. As part of easyJet’s new five-year deal with Edinburgh Airport, two additional easyJet planes will be based at the airport providing new links to Berlin, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Reykjavik, Prague from 21 March and Dubrovnik from 7 May.

    Ryanair will operate six new services to Bologna, Beziers, Cagliari, Corfu, Katowice and Santander from summer 2013 and increase frequency on five other routes. Virgin Atlantic will begin six daily services to Heathrow from 5 April providing more links to London and connecting Edinburgh with 30 worldwide destinations served by Virgin Atlantic. Air Canada Rouge, Air Canada’s new leisure airline, will begin direct flights between Edinburgh and Toronto from July 2013. Not only will the service provide a direct link to Toronto, but it will open Scotland up to Air Canada’s entire network. The service will initially fly for the summer season.

    One of the airlines that was new to Edinburgh in 2012, Turkish Airlines, will increase its four a week service to a daily service from May 2013, providing Scottish passengers easy access to Turkish Airlines global network via its Istanbul hub.

    Tell us about your new route development fund and what it will mean?

    The new £15 million Route Development Fund will to drive competition and bring new airlines and new routes to Edinburgh. Since taking ownership of Edinburgh Airport in June 2012, Global Infrastructure Partners and our new management team have prioritised the development of Edinburgh’s route network. Developing new routes can’t be left solely to the airport and we’re clear that there is a role for the city’s public and private sector to play.

    We’ll therefore be working closely with city partners: City of Edinburgh Council, Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce and others to explore how we work collaboratively to promote Edinburgh to the world’s airlines. What are your predictions for the year ahead? Despite a slight dip in year-on-year passenger numbers for December 2012, we’re optimistic of returning to growth in 2013, a year that will see Scotland's busiest airport offer more choice to passengers than ever before.

  • Roslin Institute receiving £10m funding to support the development of international livestock centre, Monday February 04 2013

    The University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute is receiving funding of £10m from the Scottish Government to support the development of an international livestock improvement centre. Professor David Hume, Director of The Roslin Institute, explains more…

    What will this funding do?

    The funding is to build a new bioincubator on the Easter Bush Campus that will be a major centre for the study of diseases that affect animals in developing countries. These include sleeping sickness, East Coast fever, tuberculosis, brucelosis and foot & mouth disease. It is internationally recognised that livestock holding provides a major route out of poverty for small farmers, and that disease contributes to the productivity of animals in Africa and Asia being much lower than in the major Western countries. We’re particularly keen firstly to have companies come in to collaborate with us and secondly to extend our achievements into the developing world. We’re also short of space! The new Roslin Institute research building that we moved into in March 2011 was built for 420 people, and now has 550 people. We particularly need space for translational work to translate what we do into improvements in animal production and animal welfare.

    How important is this development?

    It’s crucial to the livelihoods of farmers in developing countries and also to national food security. The UK is a net importer of food and the major diseases that we work with also reduce the production of animals in the UK. So it is also about ensuring the UK farming industry remains competitive and viable.

    What stage is the development at?

    We’re at the design and approvals stage so hope to have the building substructure complete by the end of 2014 or early 2015. The bioincubator is only the third stage of a programme of development here at Easter Bush Campus that we hope to finish in the next three to five years. We’ve built a new vet school, cancer clinic and The Roslin Institute Building that we share with the Animal and Veterinary Sciences Division of Scotland’s Rural College. We’ve also started to build the new National Avian Research Facility that will look at many aspects of the basic biology of birds and some of the problems of production, such as why laying birds get osteoporosis, and why birds bred for meat have reduced fertility.

    As part of this activity we also want to revitalise the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies’ Centre for Tropical Veterinary Medicine and form partnerships with organisations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

    Our future ambition is to have something in the order of £80m to 100m additional investment in this site. We welcome discussion with anyone who would like to invest in this development or locate their business on this site.

    What kind of skills or roles will be created?

    We expect to continue growing employment on this site. There will be hundreds of direct new jobs and the impact on the local economy will be well over 1000 new jobs in Scotland. They will be in basic and applied research sectors, but also in business development and education and training.

     

  • Scotland’s first soup café, Union of Genius, is looking to raise £10,000 from ‘crowd funding’, Friday January 25 2013

    Scotland’s first soup café, Union of Genius, is looking to raise £10,000 from ‘crowd funding’ to open a commercial kitchen at its Edinburgh base. Owner Elaine Mason tells us more…

    What is Union of Genius and what’s the inspiration?

    To me the name sums up what a great soup is – a blend of lots of different ingredients that is more than the sum of its parts. We have a small café at 8 Forrest Road making the best soup in Edinburgh from locally sourced, seasonal ingredients. Our recipes include broccoli, bacon and chilli; devilled pumpkin with lemongrass & sour cherry; and Afghan spiced carrot. I adore cooking and have been thinking about the soup café idea for 8 to 10 years. I was previously head of sales at British Geological Survey, and when the opportunity came up to take voluntary redundancy, that was my chance.

    How much are you looking to raise and what’s it for?

    We’re looking to raise £10,000 to open a commercial kitchen. We opened the café 15 months ago and can no longer keep up with demand. As well as offering six different soups every day to our customers, nine other cafés already stock our soup and several more want to. We have quite a small unit here and the kitchen isn’t big enough to cope with everything! We’ve already identified a site and need the funds to kit it out.

    How is it going so far?

    We’re using Kickstarter, the online funding platform where people pledge funds to creative projects. Since hitting the button last Friday evening we’ve raised about £3,700, which has completely floored me. But it’s all or nothing. If we don’t reach our £10,000 target by Sunday 17 February, we lose it all. It’s only when we hit the £10,000 target that people’s cards are debited.

    How can people help?

    Click here to see our Kickstarter page or go to www.kickstarter.com and type ‘Union of Genius’ in the search box. Once you’re on our page click the ‘Back this Project’ box. You can choose how much you want to donate, with a minimum pledge of £1. Supporters will receive different offers depending on how much they donate, for example a free soup or recipe card for £10, a Union of Genius Kickstarter embroidered apron for £40, up to free soup for life for £1,500. Thanks so much for your support!

     

  • Independent Living Services Scotland is creating 100 new carer jobs as part of its expansion, Monday January 21 2013

    Independent Living Services Scotland is creating 100 new carer jobs as part of its expansion in Edinburgh, West Lothian and East Lothian. We spoke to company Chairman Scott Christie…

    Who is ILS Scotland?

    Independent Living Services (ILS Scotland Ltd) is a community-based ‘care at home’ company. We provide services on contract back to local authorities, to support older people at home and people of all ages challenged by disabilities and other issues which make it hard for them to cope with life alone. It‘s also possible to purchase our services on a private basis, to top up care provided through the council contracts or if you’re not eligible for council supported care. In addition we can support people with complex medical needs, often following serious injury or progressive neurological conditions.

    We cover almost every part of the country, from Aberdeen / Aberdeenshire down to the Borders, and have a dedicated workforce of more than 1600 individuals.

    Why and where are you creating these new jobs?

    Scotland’s elderly population is predicted to rise by more than half a million over the next two decades, and this is leading to increased demands on care at home services, which can help support older people to live in their own homes rather than in long-term residential care.

    A little bit of help can go a long way towards maintaining an independent lifestyle, and this is exactly where we fit in. We support people with some of the everyday tasks we all take for granted, such as bathing, shopping, domestic chores and cooking meals. Companionship is also very important. We’re delighted to be expanding in Edinburgh, East Lothian and West Lothian in order to meet growing demand for these services.

    (Independent Living Services Scotland Chairman, Scott Christie)

    What kind of skills/roles are you looking for?

    We’re looking for people who share our commitment to working in the community and who really want to make a difference to people’s lives.

    Experience and relevant qualifications help, but they’re certainly not essential. Full training is provided prior to working in the community, as well as ongoing training and support with the opportunity for career progression, and an SVQ training programme has been launched for all members of our teams. Many of our new recruits have changed career into the care sector (e.g. from factory and retail work) and loved it as a result, deriving great job satisfaction which comes from a genuine interest in working with people.

    How can people find out more?

    Anyone interested in working for ILS in Edinburgh, West Lothian or East Lothian can get in touch by calling the recruitment hotline on 0800 232 1039, or through the ILS Recruitment website www.ilsrecruitment.com

  • Swedish healthcare business MölnlyckeHealth Care is expanding in Edinburgh, Monday January 07 2013

    Swedish healthcare business Mölnlycke Health Care is expanding in Edinburgh. Russell McCraith, Managing Director for the group’s new Scottish subsidiary, MHC Scotland Ltd, tells us more…

    Tell us about your business…

    At Mölnlycke Health Care, we are proud to help patients to experience less pain and health care professionals to safer and more efficient procedures by delivering innovative wound care and single-use surgical products and services all over the world. Our multicultural workforce (approx. 7000 employees), global footprint (sales in around 90 countries) and private ownership (Investor AB) make us a successful and sustainable business. We have a strong Swedish heritage (founded in 1847, headquartered in Gothenburg) and an entrepreneurial spirit that continue to fuel our growth consistently faster than the market.

    Why are you coming to Edinburgh?

    We are setting up a new R&D facility that marks our entry into the diagnostics market. We will be located in the Edinburgh BioQuarter. The location of our facility, with the proximity and access to leading clinical and academic institutions, such as the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, the Queens Medical Research Institute and the University of Edinburgh Medical School, creates a very exciting environment for collaboration and innovation. This concentration of academic and clinical excellence provides us with wide ranging access to outstanding facilities and researchers.

    What will you do here and what jobs will be created?

    We are delighted to be expanding our capabilities and product offering in close collaboration with Scottish Enterprise and the University of Edinburgh. Our task is to turn a great technology into a great product.

    We aim to develop a diagnostics tool that can deliver rapid results in detecting antibiotic resistant bacteria (so-called ‘superbugs’). Thereby providing an efficient infection control and prevention solution that can make life easier and safer for health care professionals and patients in Scotland and around the world. We are currently employing 7 full-time roles in Edinburgh (= 8 people as 2 people share the same role 50% each), as well as a consultancy agreement. Everybody involved is very excited and passionate about the potential benefit this could bring to patients, so we will be working as fast as we can to make this happen!

  • An innovative hothouse for business start-ups is to be launched in Edinburgh by Entrepreneurial-Spark, Monday December 17 2012

    An innovative hothouse for business start-ups is to be launched in Edinburgh by Entrepreneurial-Spark, the business accelerator specialist. We spoke to Jim Duffy, CEO of the new Edinburgh Hatchery…

    What is Entrepreneurial Spark?

    We’re a hybrid of a business incubator and business accelerator – we call them Hatcheries – where start-up and early stage businesses are hot-housed, nurtured and enabled for up to one year. This includes free office space and support, entrepreneurial enablement, mentors, cash prizes and events. Our vision is to create a business start-up renaissance in and from Scotland, through the development of entrepreneurial mindsets and behaviours. Applications are now being invited for the Edinburgh Hatchery (deadline 30th January), which opens on 4th of February:

    What kind of businesses or ideas are you looking for?

    Our ‘Chiclets’ are typically:

    From the seed of an idea through to three years of trading, any age, any sector, sparking individuals with the drive and determination to execute their ideas, individuals with a ‘GoDo’ attitude and individuals who are opportunity hungry and have the ability to focus and drive their business forward

    Who is behind this venture?

    Our founders are entrepreneurs, who have had good times and bad times in business start-ups so have invaluable experience to share. Our Hatcheries in Glasgow and Ayrshire are supported by Scots entrepreneur Sir Willie Haughey and Sir Tom Hunter’s Hunter Foundation, alongside Glasgow City Council and the three Ayrshire councils. I’m ‘Chief Executive Optimist’ of the new Edinburgh Hatchery, with free office space provided by Edinburgh Napier University and supported by Edinburgh City Council. I trained at Babson College in Massachusetts – which runs the USA’s leading Graduate MBA Programme for entrepreneurship – and have had a diverse career including police sergeant and entrepreneur! Our co-founder is Brian McGuire – Group Managing Director for Visioncall Group, which provides NHS optician services to housebound patients in Scotland. Our Sparky team also includes a range of Entrepreneurial Enablers, Development Dynamos, supporters and mentors who volunteer their time to make the venture possible.

    What do you hope to achieve?

    We want to create start-up communities across Scotland which are non-sectorial and where all types of business can work in a collaborative, creative workspace. We’ve spent 9 months researching the business start-up landscape in Scotland and the USA and believe the most effective way to kick-start new ventures in Scotland is through a process called entrepreneurial enablement. Giving start-ups the best possible start allows them to build up a decent head of steam – so they can make their first and second birthdays – and add important economic and social value to Scotland as a result.

     

    Applications for our Edinburgh Hatchery opening on the 4th of February are now invited on our website under the ‘Hatcheries’ tab http://www.entrepreneurial-spark.com/the-hatcheries/apply-now-to-the-hatchery.aspx ….so #GoDo (deadline 30th Jan)