Now in its eighth round, the Scottish EDGE – which is supported by RBS, the Hunter Foundation, and the Scottish Government – has had an unquestionable impact on the Scottish economy. Our 130 winners have, to date, created an additional 479 Scottish jobs, generated an additional £21.6 million in turnover, and received additional external funding to the sum of £18.7 million. In the last round of the Scottish EDGE, cash prizes of £1.3 million were shared amongst thirty-nine winners across four different categories.
The final is split in two, with a day-time pitching event, and an evening awards ceremony. Our day-time event offers the chance to watch this year’s Scottish EDGE finalists pitch for up to £100,000 in front of our expert panel of judges, to be announced in May 2016. For the six hundred expected attendees, the event also offers the opportunity to meet and learn from a variety of Scottish businesses and entrepreneurial support organisations. In particular, we’re excited to welcome Vodafone as our key partner for the current round, who will have a team of experts on hand to support Scotland’s business community. At our evening awards ceremony, we’ll be announcing the winners of the day’s Scottish EDGE pitching rounds, and unveiling the prizes across our other three categories, the Young EDGE, Wildcard EDGE, and Higgs EDGE, the winners of which will be announced in advance of the final. The event will also include keynotes from high profile guest speakers which, in the past, have included Duncan Logan of RocketSpace and BrewDog founder James Watt.
Announcing the ticket launch and Fred MacAulay’s involvement, Steven Hamill, Chief Operating Officer at the Scottish EDGE, said, “We’re absolutely delighted to have Fred hosting the Scottish EDGE Round 8 final. We anticipate the event being our biggest final to date and look forward to showcasing Scotland’s up-and-coming entrepreneurial talent, as well as offering the chance for Scotland’s small-business leaders to come along and get invaluable support and advice from the business support agencies exhibiting on the day. We’re also excited to have a team from the world-renowned Vodafone in attendance sharing their technical knowledge and expertise.”
