Press release -
Scotland House welcomes the world
The finishing touches are being put on Scotland House as the venue prepares to welcome the World to a showcase of business, sport and culture during the XX Commonwealth Games.
First Minister Alex Salmond officially opens Scotland’s national house on Monday 21 July, unveiling a host of events to capitalise on the Games.
The venue, situated in Glasgow’s City Hall and Old Fruitmarket, will be the place where Team Scotland will celebrate sporting and medal success, where business opportunities will be exploited and where the best of Scottish culture will be showcased.
Over the next two weeks, more than 60 different business events will unite Scottish and Glasgow-based companies with key business contacts, providing a unique opportunity to highlight Scotland’s business expertise to a global audience.
The Glasgow Business Embassy, based within Scotland House, will host around 40 events to showcase the best of the city’s economic prowess.
Events will compliment Scotland’s strengths, covering subjects such as food and drink, textiles and life sciences as well as tourism, financial services and further education.
Open until 3 August, Scotland House is a partnership with Commonwealth Games Scotland, the Scottish Government, VisitScotland, sportscotland, Glasgow City Council, Scottish Enterprise, Glasgow City Marketing Bureau, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, and Creative Scotland.
As well as catering for the business community, Scotland House will also play host to events organised for Team Scotland such as the Flag Bearer Ceremony, the Queen’s Baton Relay and a closing celebration.
There will also be a private area so that athletes can meet with family and friends. Meanwhile, next door, the Old Fruitmarket will provide a stunning backdrop for Festival 2014, a series of public events celebrating music, dance, drama and comedy.
First Minister Alex Salmond said: "The Commonwealth Games present us with an unmissable opportunity to promote Scotland to the many thousands of visitors and businesses and show them what a great place Scotland is to invest in or visit and what superb, high quality produce we export all around the world.
“This is a concept that was hugely successful at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, Melbourne and Delhi and also at London 2012 resulting in foreign investment in Scotland and associated jobs. Throughout the Games, visitors to Scotland House will be given a fantastic, warm Scottish reception as we sell what our great country has to offer.”
Malcolm Roughead, Chief Executive of VisitScotland, said: “2014 is a year unlike any other, it is the year when the eyes of the world will be on us. We must use this opportunity to show the world that Scotland is the perfect place to visit and invest in. Scotland House will play an important role in achieving this, providing a podium to celebrate our successes and share our strengths with an international audience. We must use the opportunities presented to us in 2014 as a springboard for economic success in the future.”
Councillor Gordon Matheson, Leader of Glasgow City Council, said: “We’re just hours away from what will undoubtedly be one of the most exciting events to happen in Glasgow in many years. Scotland House and the Glasgow Business Embassy will help us to maximise the business potential that the hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Games will bring whilst ensuring that athletes, their families and the public have somewhere in which to relax and celebrate their successes. Glasgow is one of the top cites in the world in which to do business, and the events of the Glasgow Business Embassy will help us to demonstrate this to a key business audience.”
Dr Lena Wilson, Chief Executive, Scottish Enterprise, said: “Our business programme is all about connecting Scottish businesses to new and emerging international markets. We want to encourage companies to think about exporting and collaborating overseas, and to help them develop the skills and knowledge to put their international growth ambitions into practice. Throughout this year we have an unrivalled opportunity to build a long-term international trade and investment legacy for our economy that will continue to yield results for years to come.”
ENDS
For more information, contact Louise Purves, VisitScotland press office: louise.purves@visitscotland.com or call 0131 472 2052
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- corporate communications
- glasgow 2014 commonwealth games
Regions
- Scotland
Notes to Editors:
- Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation has three key roles:
- To market Scotland to all parts of the world to attract visitors
- To provide information – and inspiration – to visitors and potential visitors so they get the best out of a visit to Scotland
- To provide quality assurance to visitors and quality advice to the industry and partners to help the industry meet and strive to exceed customer expectations
- VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- 2014 is the year Scotland welcomes the world, when it hosts the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles and more than 800 Homecoming events throughout the country.For more information on Homecoming Scotland 2014, go to www.visitscotland.com
- The VisitScotland Information Centre network is a unique face-to-face channel engaging with around five million visitors and locals each year. Everyone who uses a VisitScotland Information Centre goes on to spend an additional £5.35, generating over £24 million for Scotland’s economy.
- According to a recent Deloitte study, tourism employs 270,000 people in Scotland in 20,000 diverse businesses. The same study calculates that the industry contributes £11 billion annually (direct and indirect impact, including day visits) and supports around 10 per cent of employment in Scotland. Almost 16 million tourists take overnight trips to Scotland.
- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)
- For holiday information on Scotland go to www.visitscotland.com
- For information about business tourism in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com
- For more information on VisitScotland’s annual review please go to www.visitscotland.org/about_us/our_focus/annual_report.aspx
