Entrepreneurial Scotland and STV launch campaign to celebrate Scottish entrepreneurship

02/07/2018

Entrepreneurial Scotland and STV have joined forces to launch a new campaign celebrating entrepreneurship across Scotland.

Summit – Celebrating Scottish Entrepreneurship will showcase inspirational stories which explore the entrepreneurial mindset, illustrate its brilliance and highlight the value to our country’s economy and broader society.  These case studies will be featured on STV in the run-up to a special awards event in November.

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STV will shine a spotlight on established and up-and-coming entrepreneurs from a range of backgrounds and sectors.  These are the people and their teams who not only create jobs and value for the economy, they also breathe life into solutions to our biggest challenges and shape the future we want to live in.  Their stories will bring to life their passion, innovation, struggles, resilience, determination and warmth.

The campaign is supported by a host of sponsors and partners, to be announced in due course, who endorse the ambitions of the campaign.  It is also fully aligned to the Scotland CAN DO movement and Scotland is Now.

TheSummit – Celebrating Scottish Entrepreneurship campaign will culminate in November, when STV and Entrepreneurial Scotland will recognise Scotland’s outstanding entrepreneurs with seven nominated awards which are being launched today (2 July).

STV and Entrepreneurial Scotland are calling on innovators, visionaries and game-changers – no matter what stage they are at in their journey – to come forward and take part.

From today, STV will screen a campaign seeking nominations for The 2018 Summit Entrepreneurship Awards. Nominees are welcomed from every part of Scotland from all types of organisation, including small start-ups and family businesses, expanding corporations, social enterprises and public sector groups.

Entries are welcomed from anyone showing an entrepreneurial mindset to grow a business or organisation, address a challenge or seize an opportunity. Nominate yourself, your colleagues, customers or suppliers – anyone you believe is truly entrepreneurially-minded. Entries can be submitted here ahead of thedeadline of 16th August 2018.

The 2018 Summit Entrepreneurship Awards will build on the success of Entrepreneurial Scotland’s national awards, established 22 years ago. Reflecting the high regard in which these have been held by Scotland’s entrepreneurial community, the 2018 Summit Entrepreneurship Awards will include the existing Entrepreneur of the YearScale-Up of the Year and Rising Star of the Year awards categories.

Previous winners of these annual accolades include some of Scotland’s most high-profile entrepreneurs, including: Jim McColl O.B.E. of Clyde Blowers (1999), David Sibbald O.B.E. of Alantech (2000), Ann Budge of Newell & Budge (2005), Mike Loggie of Saltire Energy (2015), Gareth Williams of Skyscanner (2017), Lucinda Bruce Gardyne of Genius Gluten Free (2005), and Mike Welch O.B.E. of Blackcircles (2014).

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The 2018 Summit Entrepreneurship Awards will also feature four new categories in recognition of the increasing scope and diversity of entrepreneurship within Scotland.  The additional awards categories are:

  • Intrapreneur of the Year, for individuals who demonstrate an entrepreneurial mindset and ethos with a dramatic effect on the organisation which employs them, be they in the public or private sector.
  • Social Entrepreneur of the Year, recognising those who use their entrepreneurial talents and leadership to achieve a social purpose.
  • Young Entrepreneur of the Year, for young people aged 12-18, starting out on their entrepreneurial journey.
  • Academic Entrepreneur of the Year, shining a light on those academics who have turned their discoveries or research into mainstream, impactful businesses.

Entrepreneurial Scotland Chief Executive, Sandy Kennedy, said:

“As we set out in our recent 2030 Strategy, for Scotland to thrive it is vital that we showcase and celebrate entrepreneurial role models of all kinds, wherever they are and at every stage of their journey.  The five month long Summit campaign is the perfect opportunity to do just that.

“We are thrilled to partner with STV and we applaud its commitment to Scottish entrepreneurship.  Together, STV and Entrepreneurial Scotland, along with our other partners, sponsors and the broader entrepreneurial community, can showcase the benefits of adopting an entrepreneurial mindset to a much larger audience than ever before.  This is another big step closer to creating the most entrepreneurial society in the world, right here in Scotland.”

STV Commercial Director, Peter Reilly, said:

“We are hugely excited to launch Summit – Celebrating Scottish Entrepreneurship, in conjunction with Entrepreneurial Scotland. Summit is an opportunity to connect entrepreneurs with the unrivalled reach STV has with consumers across Scotland. At STV we are focused on driving economic growth for Scotland and recognise that the thriving entrepreneurial community is core to a real, sustainable positive impact on our country’s economy.

“We want to help entrepreneurs increase awareness of their brilliant organisations to support their ongoing growth and scale-up, as well as inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs to take that next step and start up. STV attracts mass audiences all over Scotland – on air, online and on demand – so highlighting these Scottish entrepreneurial stories will really showcase and shine a light on the innovations and achievements across the country.”

Nominees for The 2018 Summit Entrepreneurship Awards will be assessed by a judging panel of sector experts that will include past winners of Entrepreneurial Scotland’s awards. From there, a shortlist of finalists will be assessed on judging days in October and November.

The winners of The 2018 Summit Entrepreneurship Awards will be announced on 22 November at The Summit Celebration Dinner at SWG3 in Glasgow.

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