Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

The next 12 months looks set to be an exciting time in the world of co-ops with the United Nations designating 2025, the International Year of  Co-operatives (IYC 2025). But before we embrace all that the New Year will bring, our team want to pause and look back on the achievements and developments of 2024.

We catch up with the team members as they share some of their highlights.

Darah Zahran Team Leader for Co-operative Development Scotland (CDS) and Inclusive Business Models, Scottish Enterprise

“2024 has been another exceptionally productive year as we launched several new event programmes and projects alongside our longstanding initiaitves and ongoing client support.   For me, one of the key developments has been the Scottish Government’s review of inclusive and 

Image of Darah Zahran

democratic business models (IDBMs) and publication of the subsequent report Developing Scotland’s Economy: Increasing the Role of Inclusive and Democratic Business Models. An extremely timely piece of work as we head into IYC 2025.

Published in September, the report provides guidance for increasing the number of IDBMs in Scotland. We were pleased to be invited to share our insight during the process. For nearly two decades we have adapted our service to meet changing economic conditions but always with the goal of increasing awareness and understanding about the range and value of IDBMs among entrepreneurs, business advisers, policymakers and communities. Collaboration across stakeholders and intermediaries is critical to fully understand, respond and celebrate the value of these organisations. We welcome the opportunity to ramp up this work and collaborate with our many partners through the new proposed Economic Democracy Group recommended in the report. This independent review recognises the value of IDBMs and their importance in helping to create the necessary change for a fairer economy. CDS is excited to be part of this discussion especially with the UN stating the importance of co-operatives in sustainable development across social economic and environmental dimensions as we head into IYC 2025.” Read the full blog article here.

Glen Dott, Specialist Advisor Employee Ownership

“This year we kicked off a brand-new event programme to complement our existing offer of successful events for business owners and advisors.  The Employee Ownership Transition: A Deep Dive workshop was aimed at business owners looking for a more in-depth review of the process.  Topics covered include:

  • How a transaction / sale of shares to an EOT works.
  • Valuation, purchase price and repayments
  • Seller protections and the role of the exiting owners.

Find out more here.

“We published the Employee-owned business Census 2024 in spring 2024 and the number of employee-owned businesses operating in Scotland had grown to 286 as of March 31, an 47% increase since 2022 demonstrating the growing interest in the business model.  Read the full census here.

We look forward to hosting more events in 2025 and supporting the continued growth of the sector.”

Helen Dickson, Marketing Project Manager

“Back in 2023 we carried out some research with business advisors to get feedback around their perceptions of co-operatives and it was both an informative and eye-opening experience. We could see quite a few misconceptions across the piece and decided it was the perfect opportunity to address some of these. The project came to fruition this year and we recorded a new video series in January called Dispelling the Myths of Co-ops. It was a brilliant project to work on and we’ve created a really useful resource that helps our clients get a better understanding of the potential of co-ops and deal with the misconceptions upfront.” You can what the full series here.

Stewart Macgregor, Specialist Advisor Co-ops

“After two successful pilot events early in 2024, CDS designed and launched a new workshop series to explore how businesses can thrive as co-operatives. Our Understanding Co-ops series consists of informative and interactive workshops that give an in-depth understanding of co-operatives, as well as the initial steps required to start one. Each event features a co-op expert from Co-operate Scotland LLP and two local co-ops who can share their first-hand experience of operating a co-op business. The first event took place in December with long established Green City Wholefoods as well as new formed co-op Radiophrenia, an artist run radio station. We have three more events scheduled for 2025 with Open Data Services, Tripod, Scottish Flowers Co-operative, gaming co-op Very Evil Demons and Theatre Arts Collective among the exciting guests lined up. It’s a fantastic way to kick off IYC 2025.” Find out more here.

“But we also can’t reflect back on this year without noting our first co-operative learning journey. In November our team hit the road and visited Highlands and Islands to help raise awareness of co-operatives and share the stories of the successful businesses working this way in the region. Working in partnership with Highlands and Island Enterprise the two-day event was a great success, and we hope to bring more events like this to our programme of activity for IYC 2025. Read the full summary here.

Angela Wardrope, Marketing Project Manager

We held our third annual Employee Ownership Learning Journey in October and it was an incredible 2 days. We had 39 participants join us for the programme visiting and hearing from employee-owned firms in Edinburgh and Lothians. The agenda was packed with tours of employee-owned business premises as well as informative speaking slots and workshops. Our speaker line up included Jerba Campervans, Computer Application Services, Edinburgh Designs, Glen Drummond, Tepnel Pharma Services, i4 Product Design. Ewan Hall from Baxendale Employee Ownership, John Housego from Aquascot and Simon Fowler, Chair, Director, and Non Executive Director. Year after year, the Employee Ownership Learning Journey continues to be a huge draw for those considering employee ownership as well as those already employee-owned and we look forward to bringing you more events like this one in 2025.” Read the full article here.

Gillian Kirton, Project Manager

“Earlier this year we worked with Bold Studio and Social Enterprise Scotland (SES) to create new animations to explain what a social enterprise is and how to identify one. 

Social enterprises are of huge importance to Scotland and are part of the overall IMDB landscape that our team support. They already contribute £4.8bn to the economy, positively impacting wellbeing at the same time. There is a significant opportunity for the sector to grow further by working with the wider business support community to recognise the potential and support these types of organisations.  

The animations are aimed at frontline business advisors and this content will provide them with a useful resource to help them understand this type of business and go on to provide support to them in the future.”

 You can access the animations here.

Event Round up: Co-operative Learning Journey

In November our team hit the road and visited Highlands and Islands to help raise awareness of Co-operatives and share the stories of the successful businesses working this way in the region.

Working in partnership with Highlands and Island Enterprise the two-day event was a great success and we caught up with project manager, Helen Dickson to find out more.

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Event Round up: Employee Ownership Learning Journey

The third annual 2024 Employee Ownership Learning journey took place 30-31 October. Hosted by Co-operative Development Scotland,  the event showcased examples of effective employee ownership in successful, growing businesses. These companies shared their learning and experience giving helpful pointers of what has worked and what hasn’t in their employee ownership journey. We caught up with project manager Angela Wardrope to find out more

Collage of three photos Photo 1. Man presenting Photo 2 group infront of camper van Photo 3: Group infront of bus.
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New report published examining the role of inclusive and democratic business models

Tripling the number of inclusive and democratic businesses (IDBMs) in Scotland will make a significant contribution to transforming the country’s economy according to a new report published 3rd September 2024.

The report: Developing Scotland’s Economy: Increasing the Role of Inclusive and Democratic Business Models was published after the review was announced in the National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) report (Scottish Government, 2022) and seeks to provide guidance for increasing the number of Inclusive and Democratic Business Models (IDBMs) in Scotland.

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Dispelling the myths of co-ops

We recently carried out some research with business advisors to get feedback around their perceptions of co-operatives and it was both an informative and eye-opening experience. We could see quite a few misconceptions across the piece, so we thought this provided the perfect opportunity to address some of these misconceptions and have created a brand-new video series called Dispelling the Myths of Co-ops. In our latest blog, marketing project manager, Helen Dickson shares the new video series. 

Co-op video Guide Introducing co-op and dispelling the myths. Graphic of scr scrapper, wind turbine, whisky still, bus, shop and solar panels
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Delivering real economic impact and commercial success without compromising value or social impact

Key learning from Scottish Government and Quebec Social Economy Policy Exchange


In May, Co-operative Development Scotland team leader, Darah Zahran, was invited to participate in the Scottish Government’s and Quebec Social Economy Policy Exchange Led by Social Enterprise World Forum and hosted by Chantier de L’Economie Sociale www.chantier.qc.ca. We caught up with Darah to find out more about what her key takeaways were from this insightful and inspiring programme.

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Employee ownership key to retaining and developing businesses in Northern Ireland

DLD Fund & Chartered Accountants Ulster Society Employee Ownership Breakfast Series – June 2024

Earlier this month, Co-operative Development Scotland employee ownership specialist Glen Dott was asked to speak at a series of breakfast events across Northern Ireland showcasing the success and uptake of employee ownership in Scotland. We caught up with him to find out more about the events and what is happening in Northern Ireland to support the model as a business succession option.

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The Scottish Co-operative Discovery Centre to celebrate Scottish Co-operative Movement

A community group in West Lothian are on their way to creating the first centre dedicated to the story of the Scottish co-operative movement.

Group of employees from the Co-op Discovery Centre

West Calder & Harburn Community Development Trust (WCHCDT) plans to create a hands-on, experiential, fun discovery & learning centre based around co-operative heritage that will create a nationally recognised attraction with café and event space, boosting local footfall and creating jobs.

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Meet Dave Routledge, a passionate employee ownership advocate

Our employee ownership learning journey to Renfrewshire and Lanarkshire is taking place on 28 & 29 February 2024.

To help give a flavour of what to expect as part of the learning journey we caught up with guest speaker and workshop leader Dave Routledge, a passionate employee ownership advocate for most of his career who has held leadership roles in a number of employee-owned companies, as well as serving on the board of the Employee Ownership Association.

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Is starting a co-op right for you?

We’re getting ready to host our first co-op masterclasses next month. In the run up to the event we caught up with co-op specialist Suzanne Orchard to find out more about the new events and what is in store for those who sign up.

Picture of Suzanne Orchard“As Scotland strives to create a wellbeing economy, co-ops can play a critical role in realising that ambition.  They are proven to be resilient and contribute significantly to the economy, by delivering beyond the measure of GDP. They are democratic, fair businesses that place profit on an equal footing to planet and people, delivering positive impacts for the communities they serve.

 

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EOA Conference 2023 – Top 5 Takeaways

Collage of event pictures featuring stage with presentation, proudly employee owned logo and Glen Dott.

Our specialist adviser Glen Dott attended the recent EOA Conference 2023 which took place in Liverpool on 27-28 November 2023.  With 2 days of jam-packed activities, from keynote speakers, breakout sessions, silent theatre, fireside chats to the exhibition area, conference dinner and networking opportunities, we caught up with Glen for his top five takeaways from the conference: 

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Business Support Needs of Co-operatives in Scotland

Over the summer we issued an invite to the co-op sector to share their insights with us and help us inform our plans for 2023.  With the responses now in and feedback collated, our specialist advisor, Stewart Macgregor outlines some of the key findings in our latest blog article:

Stewart MacgregorAs the only public-sector-funded service in Scotland dedicated to supporting economic growth by increasing the number of co-operatives, Co-operative Development Scotland (CDS) must ensure that co-ops have a greater role and voice to inform the areas of support that we provide.

With that goal in mind, we devised the ‘Business Support Needs of Co-operatives in Scotland’ survey to help us understand the key sectors that co-ops are working in, the support that new and existing co-ops have accessed in the last 12 months, and the areas of support they would benefit from over the next 12 months.

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Highlights from the Oxford Symposium

The second annual Oxford Symposium on Employee Ownership took place last month.  Organised by Graeme Nuttall OBE and Professor John Hoffmire, the aim is to bring together individuals and organisations active in employee ownership policy-making from across the world to share ideas and learning.   The number of nations represented was impressive: there were at least 20 countries attending including Australia, Japan, Denmark, Slovenia, Canada and the US. Co-operative Development Scotland were pleased to report strong Scottish representation and we caught up with Simon Poole of Jerba Campervans who shares his experience in our latest blog article. 

Group of Jerba Campervans employees standing in front of campervan
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No Succession-style drama here – Alexander (Scotland) & Co Ltd and Glen Drummond Chartered Accountants make the move to employee ownership

While one trades in Steel and the other in Numbers, two more Scottish companies – Alexander (Scotland) & Co and Glen Drummond Chartered Accountants – have proved they see the value in becoming employee-owned, handing their respective employees a 100% share via the creation of an employee ownership trust (EOT).

It is a choice being made by an increasing number of companies in Scotland as the employee ownership business model becomes more widely understood. We caught up with current owner of Mr Glenn Maclachlan of Alexander (Scotland) & Co and Chris Wilson CA, director of Glen Drummond to find out more about each of their moves.

Group of employees outside Alexander Scotland premisese. Company sign and vehicle visible in background
Employees from Alexander (Scotland) & Co Ltd based in Striling

“Alexander (Scotland) & Co Ltd has been serving steel customers across Central Scotland for almost 75 years. From humble beginnings at a small premises in Stirling, with just a horse and cart for delivery, the company has grown to forty employees with two premises in Stirling and one in Bathgate,” explains Glenn.

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An altogether different way to do business- with New Leaf Co-op

This Co-op Fortnight we’re joining with Co-operatives UK and the co-op sector to celebrate how co‑operatives offer an altogether different way to do business. We thought this was a great opportunity to catch up with an established co-op. In our newest blog article, Sally Green of Edinburgh based New Leaf chats to us about why a co-op model works for their members and their customers and how its helping them navigate the challenges of the cost of living crisis.

Sally Green sranding outside New Leaf Co-op with a box of produce

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Meet our specialist advisors

Last month we launched our brand-new Inclusive Business Models Video Guide which demonstrates the type of business models our team can support. Each video stars one of our specialist advisors so in our latest blog article, we’re shining a light on them to find out more about who they are and why they love working with employee-owned businesses and co-ops.  

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Scotland welcomes three new employee-owned businesses

It was a great start to 2023 for employee ownership as three Scottish businesses implemented an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT), safeguarding the long-term future of their companies, retaining jobs, skills and investment. We caught up with Clare Alexander, Head of Co-operative Development Scotland, to find out more.

SVM Glasgow, Stoneywood Care Services in Denny and Oliver Chapman Architects in Edinburgh have all made the move to employee ownership since the start of 2023.  Our team were pleased to be involved in the early stages of the process for each by providing advice and support via a 100% funded ownership succession review and employee ownership feasibility study.

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