EDINBURGH Social Enterprise Network (ESEN) and the City of Edinburgh Council are encouraging people to Buy the Good Stuff this festive period by purchasing from one of Edinburgh’s 170 social enterprises.
Linsay Chalmers, network co-ordinator of Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network (ESEN), said: “What better time is there than Christmas to take a look at all of the amazing food, gifts and activities sold by social enterprises and, when you buy, you know that your Christmas shopping is also benefiting Edinburgh.”
ESEN, with the help of the City of Edinburgh Council and Business Gateway, are promoting the Buy the Good Stuff campaign; aimed at raising awareness of the fantastic range of products and services sold by social enterprises in the city. Social enterprises are businesses that invest their profits back into their community or to social causes. They operate like any other business, but by reinvesting their profits rather than distributing them to shareholders, they benefit their local community and social causes – and their presence is growing rapidly in Edinburgh.
This year, Scotland’s capital became a champion for social enterprise in the UK. Not only is it leading the way in terms of providing a home to a huge range of social enterprises, but it held Social in the Square, Scotland’s first festival of social enterprise in St Andrew Square Garden in September.
Here, customers got a glimpse of some of the city’s social enterprises and were able to sample and buy their products.
From home-baked bread from Breadshare, which will shortly be opening a shop in Portobello, to music provided Dads Rock, which runs playgroups with a difference, its market stalls and performances showcased Edinburgh-based social enterprises.
The event was a huge success for the city and contributed to the City of Edinburgh Council and ESEN being recognised for their efforts to support social enterprises when they won the 2014 Social Enterprise ‘Market Builder’ Award in Scotland and were shortlisted for the UK final at the end of last month.
The campaign to encourage Edinburgh to Buy the Good Stuff pushes on in the build up to Christmas and the campaign’s mascot ‘Doogie Goodstuff’ is drawing some positive attention. Recently, he was spotted with Cllr Frank Ross, Convener of the Economy Committee, who said: “In the run up to Christmas it is important that we raise awareness of ‘Buy the Good Stuff’, a new campaign from Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network to promote businesses that circulate their profits back into their community or other good causes. There are over 170 social enterprises in Edinburgh offering a huge range of products from cafes to retail to creative industries and leisure.”
We would encourage people to look through the social enterprise directory www.socialbuy.co.uk and follow the @buythegoodstuff Twitter account to find out more about this amazing sector that’s thriving in Edinburgh. Whether you buy lunch some personalised art from ICE Retail in the St James Centre, take your kids on a Santa Cruise on Union Canal or fuel your Christmas shop with lunch at Café on the Corner on Hill Street; remember you will be giving back to your community this festive season and beyond if you Buy the Good Stuff.
Contact
For further press information contact:
Linsay Chalmers
Network Coordinator
Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network
E-mail: linsay@edinburghsocialenterprise.co.uk
Mobile: 07940 512110
Notes to editors
- The attached photograph shows Cllr Frank Ross, the Convenor of the Economy Committee at City of Edinburgh Council; Linsay Chalmers, the Network Coordinator of Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network and Doogie Goodstuff, the Buy the Good Stuff campaign mascot
- Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network is the membership network for social enterprises in Edinburgh edinburghsocialenterprise.co.uk @socentedinburgh
- Buy the Good Stuff is the marketing campaign encouraging people to buy from social enterprises which is run in partnership by ESEN, the City of Edinburgh Council and the Business Gateway buythegoodstuff.co.uk @buythegoodstuff
- The annual Social Enterprise Awards Scotland are run by Social Enterprise Scotland in partnership with Social Enterprise UK
What is social enterprise?
Social enterprise is a way of doing business that benefits the community, society or the environment. Social enterprises must reinvest all of their profits into their social or environmental aims and many also achieve their aims through the way that they run their business, for example by employing people who might otherwise find it difficult to find a job.
Edinburgh Social Enterprise Network uses the criteria for social enterprise set out in the Social Enterprise Code (www.se-code.net).
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Contact: Linsay Chalmers
Phone: 07940512110
Email: linsay@edinburghsocialenterprise.co.uk
Website: http://www.edinburghsocialenterprise.co.uk
