Event to highlight new ways to generate funding
The Community Shares Scotland (CSS) team are holding the next roadshow in their pan-Scotland series at the Melting Pot in Rose Street this Friday (1 May).
The aim of the event is to show local communities how they can utilise an alternative funding method to develop their own projects and invest in their own futures.
It also offers groups a chance to meet and mingle with other community groups who are interested in setting up a share offer or learn from those who have had success already.
CSS programme manager, Kelly McIntyre, said: “We launched our roadshow programme last year with the aim of growing the community enterprise market through practical application and help people progress their own community projects.
“We are now beginning to see a network of like-minded enterprises grow across Scotland using community shares to generate income for their communities – from Fort William to Dunbar, Aberdeen to Harris and throughout Scotland.
“People have asked us for case studies and examples of other enterprises whom have been successful in getting their projects, big and small off the ground.
“For example, the Sunart renewable energy hydro scheme in Lochaber is real example of community spirit and effort to make an ambitious project a reality.
“And right on our door-step we have local greengrocer, Dig-In Bruntsfield Community Greengrocers Ltd, who will be giving a talk on the day about their experience of setting up a community greengrocer business through their community share offer.
Dig-In’s Catherine Francis said: “We are a community-owned and supported, not-for-profit greengrocer in Edinburgh who supply locally-sourced produce and foster community spirit.
“Thanks to our incredible volunteers, community shareholders and committee membership, we are now a thriving enterprise.
“We function along the lines of a community enterprise model, offering community shares which keeps us rooted in the community. We’re looking forward to participating in the Community Shares Roadshow on 1 May – coincidentally, also the first anniversary of our shop opening!”
Kelly McIntyre added: “Fair Trade is another area where community share schemes have been used to provide a different model for developing a live project.
“For example, Glasgow-based Bala Sport are a new co-operatively-led venture that plans to take Fairtrade Sports balls to the same level of awareness and sales as other popular Fairtrade products, such as bananas, coffee, tea, sugar and chocolate.”
Angus Coull, marketing and communications director of Bala Sport, explained: “As a start-up community benefit society, selling high-quality Fairtrade-certified sports balls, the help and support we received from Kelly at Community Shares Scotland was invaluable.
“With no previous experience and little knowledge of how community share offers work, so it was like having our own account manager with personal one-to-one advice and a lot of social media back-up.
“I was surprised at the amount of input from CSS – you can tell they really do want your business to succeed and they naturally know their stuff.”
He added: “As a tiny co-op competing with big brand sports balls companies, we need to raise £150,000 to help us buy in sufficient levels of stock in our early stages and we wanted to make a big impact at our launch event.
“We booked Hampden Stadium and, with the financial support from Community Shares Scotland, we were able to produce high impact promotional materials to reinforce the message and help convince the potential investors at the event.
“When Kelly thinks we’re easing off on the awareness raising, she’ll let us know – and the CSS tweets will start coming thick and fast – very welcome motivation and a pleasure to deal with.”
Bala Sports balls come from Fairtrade accredited factories in Sialkot, Pakistan, where both workers and the wider community benefit from the Fairtrade premium that is paid.
The current share offer closes on 31 May 2015 and people are encouraged to invest as little as £50 to meet the target of £150,000.
Check out the offer at http://www.microgenius.org.uk/project/fair-trade-sports-balls-limited-30
Free roadshow event but booking essential:
Friday, 1 May 10:0am to 3:0pm
The Melting Pot, 5 Rose Street, EH2 2PR
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/community-shares-scotland-edinburgh-roadshow-tickets-16015653250
Any questions? Give us a call on 0131 220 3777
CSS is made up of a consortium of partners, DTAS, Co-operatives UK, Locality, Plunkett Foundation and Rocket Science.
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