Edinburgh residents are being urged to consider shopping locally on the eve of Small Business Saturday.
As Christmas approaches, the Capital is celebrating the grass-roots campaign, which champions small businesses and returns this weekend (6 December) for its thirteenth year in the UK.
To mark the day, Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener Councillor Tim Pogson visited small businesses at the Shore in Leith to meet owners and staff and find out more about what’s on offer.
Each of the traders is a member of the Shore Collective, a group of businesses formed to promote and support local enterprises.
Café Truva is a family-run café opened in 1998 which specialises in Turkish and Mediterranean cuisine.
Portal is ‘Leith’s witchy shop’, located in the 300-year old King’s Wark complex. As well as a large collection of rare and unusual crystals, the shop stocks gifts, jewellery, antiques, artwork and locally sourced wares, alongside other goods.
SESH Hairdressing was opened in 2004 by Head Stylist Simon Hill and pioneered its own brand of ‘Edinburgh hair with Leith flair’.
Moonwake Beer Co. is a multi award-winning brewery established in 2021 by a team with extensive craft beer and brewing experience. A taproom overlooking the brewery lets visitors sample the different beers on offer.
Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener Councillor Tim Pogson said:
It was fantastic to visit some of the vibrant and well-loved small businesses in Leith, and to find out more from the people who work there.
Leith is just one of many communities around the Capital boasting an exciting range of independent shops, cafes and traders which don’t only provide a great service but contribute so much to the local economy. Through Forever Edinburgh we’re helping to shed light on different neighbourhoods like these and I’d encourage everyone to visit edinburgh.org to explore all that’s on offer.
As we approach Small Business Saturday – and Christmas – I would urge as many people as possible to consider shopping local and supporting small businesses year-round.
Forever Edinburgh, the Council’s in-house destination marketing team, provides free promotional opportunities for leisure and hospitality businesses across the city. This includes free business and event listings on Edinburgh.org, opportunities to be featured across Forever Edinburgh’s social media channels and promotion of offers and deals through a dedicated offers page.