We have been hearing a lot recently that Scottish businesses are beginning to see positive signs of growth, so it was great to see a recent report from the Scottish Chambers of Commerce all but confirming the news.
A total of 330 firms responded to their Quarterly Economic Indicator (QEI) survey – Scotland’s longest-running economic survey of its kind, having been operating since 1990.
With a broad spectrum of businesses questioned in a variety of sectors, they all reported substantial rises in confidence and domestic sales in the past year, owing to the easing of general and domestic travel lockdown restrictions.
The Scottish economy grew by two percent in April compared to October, however, it was still down by just under four per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels.
Growth may be down from 2019, but it is moving in the right direction, so cautious optimism should definitely be the current outlook for those in business.
This resonates further when those surveyed felt that although sales were up, investment and staff levels with most firms would most likely stay the same for the third quarter. Add in to the mix that the furlough scheme will be withdrawn, growth relating to staffing may be much slower.
Tim Allan, the president of the SCC, went to great lengths to reiterate the huge uncertainties over what the Scottish economy would look like post-pandemic, especially where towns and city centres were involved due to a reduction in footfall as many workers continued working from home.
This was perhaps backed up by the recent report by a YouGov panel, commissioned by the professional services company Accenture, which found that 21 per cent of Scottish financial services workers favour full remote working post-pandemic.
The vast majority also said that they would prefer to work just two days a week or less in the office, with only five per cent in favour of a return to five days a week in the office.
I certainly don’t believe that office life is over. It just has to evolve to these new times we live in. This was echoed by Stuart Chalmers, head of financial services for Accenture Scotland, who said: “The sector has a big opportunity to reinvent physical workspaces, complemented by digital environments, to drive collaboration with colleagues throughout the UK and shape positive workplace cultures post-pandemic.”
Another reason to remain positive on commercial property is that Edinburgh office take-up has increased by nearly 80 per cent in the second quarter of 2021, compared to the first three months of the year.
The figures, released by commercial property consultancy Knight Frank, found that with lockdown restrictions easing, demand for space has not only increased but consistently remained high, with further uptake in office space in Edinburgh from September more than likely.
A hybrid approach to office life will most likely become the norm over the next year, and the sector will need to embrace this, however it also gives food for thought on how city centres reinvent themselves to increase footfall and ensure that they react to the recent changes in consumer behaviour.
Uncertainty around city centres hasn’t stopped investment however, and as we have seen a number of large scale retail projects have recently been completed or are underway around Scotland.
The St James Quarter in Edinburgh opened to much fanfare in the past couple of weeks, however the flash flooding it experienced shortly after lifting the shutters may have dampened the celebrations. Moving forward however it will certainly bring many flocking to the city.
Construction on a new retail development in Inverness city centre, set for completion in autumn 2022, is also underway, which will look to play its part in the regeneration of the area.
Billed as ‘offering tenants the flexibility required to meet today’s retail and hospitality market’, the new development, which will be known as Union Court, looks to me as if it has taken into consideration just what brick and mortar stores will need to provide consumers in the future.
These are still uncertain times that we are living in, but like retail and the commercial property sectors, Scottish businesses must now turn their attention towards encouraging long term growth and restarting Scotland’s economy as we see the first shoots of recovery across the board.
Reports are increasingly showing the negative effects the pandemic has had on the mental health of children and young people over the last year and a half.
With so much time spent cooped up indoors, coupled with huge chunks of their education being missed and the ongoing uncertainty around exams, it’s no wonder the younger generation has struggled to cope.
There’s no shortage of evidence to show how much physical activity and sport can boost our mood, so I was delighted to see that a series of summer camps has been launched by Netball Scotland, aimed at getting 9–16 year olds involved in the sport.
Running in partnership with Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels, the classes will be running in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Perth, and organisers are hoping to encourage more than 2,000 youngsters to get moving again during the summer holidays.
Glasgow City Council has also recently launched a ‘Get Active Glasgow’ campaign which hopes to get more people walking, running and cycling between now and the end of September. Although the campaign has attracted criticism from Labour MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy who hit out about the number of sports facilities which remain closed across the city, I think any kind of push for people to be more active is a positive move.
It’s difficult to fathom that not so long ago we were in the early days of lockdown and outdoor activity was limited to just an hour each day, so now we’re able to get out and about more, I hope campaigns like this make a difference and get us moving – not just for the sake of our physical health, but also to keep our spirits up.
It Made Me Laugh
You can always rely on the people of Glasgow to give you a good laugh when you least expect it, and this week was no different as a local man racked up almost 20,000 views after a video of him watching the Euros dressed as Obi-Wan Kenobi was uploaded to TikTok.
Stuart, a Star Wars fan who regularly dresses up for charity, has gone viral after turning up to Queen’s Park to watch a screening of a Euros football match decked out in the costume, which even included a lightsaber.
His fellow football fans were left in hysterics and viewers have dubbed him ‘a legend’ and joked the crowd had actually gathered to watch Stuart rather than the match. I say good on him!
It Made Me Weep
A social media post from McVitie’s asking the nation to ‘switch up the way they eat their favourite biscuit’ by eating them upside down has backfired, after customers raced to issue angry replies following McVitie’s decision to close its Tollcross plant – a move which will see the loss of almost 500 jobs.
I’m not sure how the social media managers didn’t see the responses coming from a mile away, but comments included ‘We’re asking you to switch up the way you treat workers at your Tollcross factory’, and many have even threatened to boycott the brand altogether if the plans go ahead.
The closure is incredibly sad news for all those set to be affected so it’s completely understandable that people are taking to social media to voice their upset.
