Business

Equity deal activity involving smaller businesses in Scotland picked up during the first half of 2024, one of only two parts of the UK to experience a year-on-year increase after a difficult 2023, according to new research from the British Business Bank. The Bank’s annual Nations & Regions

Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP (WJM) and Irwin Mitchell Scotland recently hosted a special Indonesian business outreach event in Glasgow.

A project to create a new high-end recording studio on the Isle of Mull in Argyll has been awarded up to £39,000 by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE). New start company Heb Aisle Limited is converting a former church building in the village of Bunessan on the southern end of the island.

The founders of Styled by Macs are gearing up for expansion and targeting customers across the UK following the success of their Linlithgow clothing boutique in its first 18 months.

Robert P. Slight & Sons, a Scottish company with links to the construction of Capitol Hill in 1825, has made the move to employee ownership. 

In a sign of the strong potential of the UK economy, 468,000 new firms have started up in the first half of 2024, according to the New Startup Index, published by Beauhurst and supported by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS).

Scotland's private sector showed solid growth in July, driven mainly by the service sector, according to the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). The bank's latest Regional Growth Tracker data shows private sector firms across Scotland signalled a solid rise in activity at the start of the second half

Scottish candle making supply giant Candle Shack has recorded 14% revenue growth driven by rapid expansion in mainland Europe. The Falkirk-based firm, the UK’s leading candle making and training supplier, which also has a site in The Netherlands, grew revenues from £11.9m to £13.4m

Aberdeenshire ice cream maker Mackie’s has secured deals which have seen its products stocked in over 1,000 additional UK stores this year.

Aberdeen company John Wood Group saw its share prices plummet as Dubai-based potential buyer Sidara abandoned a takeover deal. The Dubai-based engineer Dar Al-Handasah, known as Sidara, had been pursuing the firm for several months.

The UK Government under the new leadership of Kier Starmer has decided to axe £800 million plans to create an "exascale" supercomputer at the University of Edinburgh. In October last year, the University of Edinburgh announced that the UK’s first next-generation supercomputer which is fi

abrdn plc has posted its half year results with adjusted operating profits rising by £1 million from £127m in H1 2023, to £128m. Jason Windsor, interim chief executive officer, said that in the first half of the year the firm has made an "encouraging start" as it became "more effic

 Founder Barrie Clarke and Roy MacGregor, a volunteer and member at Kintore Golf Club A 53-year-old self-taught golfer is hoping to share his newfound passion for the sport with other golf novices in an accessible, beginner-friendly format with the launch of a new business venture, Big Golf Tou

Business confidence in Scotland rose eight points during July to 51%, according to the latest Business Barometer from Bank of Scotland. Companies in Scotland reported higher confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, up one point at 45%. When taken alongside their optimism in the eco

A total of six new traders – and four more to come shortly – have opened on the Granite Mile in the last year thanks to the £195,000 Union Street Empty Shops Grant Scheme, helping to bring the number of vacant units down from 47 to 38. The Aberdeen City Council scheme has meant abo