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3 minute read
Local hero
A bid to help independent businesses weather the storm of Covid-19 has sparked the launch of an international initiative predicted to generate £1million for local economies by the end of the year.
A few weeks ago everything changed overnight for cafes, restaurants, boutiques, artisans, creators and small retailers. Social distancing measures forced them to close their doors indefinitely and the future became somewhat uncertain.
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Upset by the impact the pandemic was having on commerce in his home city of Edinburgh entrepreneur Robbie Allen decided to try and do something about it.
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Robbie Allen
In an attempt to provide independent vendors with a much-needed lifeline he launched ‘Keep Edinburgh Thriving’, a service that provides a selection of local, high-quality products packaged up into gift boxes and delivered to customers to support the local economy.
Two sizes of boxes were made available to begin with – a small parcel of four or five items for £39 and a large one of six or seven items for £55. Each one contained a variety of locally sourced products, including artisan food and snacks, art, drinks, craft coffee, beer, spirits, skin care treatments and lifestyle products, such as candles, coasters, notebooks and mugs or tumblers.
Robbie initially thought he would be able to sell around 100 boxes a week which would be hand delivered to addresses in Edinburgh.
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However, he sold out his first batch in just two days as the idea caught the imagination of consumers and orders started coming in from around the world.
In the first six weeks alone Robbie sold over 2,000 ‘Keep Edinburgh Thriving’ boxes, generating over £55,000 in revenue for 47 local businesses.
“Our aim is to Keep Edinburgh Thriving. We are partnering with a bunch of amazing local businesses in Edinburgh and taking these high-quality products and handling all the logistics and e-commerce side of things for them so that they can continue to grow and sustain their company and livelihood,” said Robbie.
“This is a really tough time for our beloved high street, and we want to help as many local businesses as possible. As soon as you place an order this instantly benefits our local partners providing the products in each gift box.”
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Interest in the idea quickly spread and Robbie set up a similar operation, “Keep Glasgow Thriving’, in Scotland’s largest city and announced plans to do the same in Aberdeen and other communities across the UK.
As the initiative expands to other cities so does the number of businesses taking part and the range of products available to consumers.
In recognition of Father’s Day the company created a limited edition ‘Keep Daddy Thriving’ box packed full of goodies supplied by local independent retailers.
The company has also launched a range of special Quarantini boxes to help bars and restaurants that have been forced to close their doors.
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Starting in Edinburgh, each Box is filled with cocktails lovingly crafted by local bartenders and restaurateurs as well as beers and spirits from local distilleries and breweries.
“We have been completely overwhelmed with the support we have seen for ‘Keep Edinburgh Thriving’ and it’s been amazing to be able to support local independents to stay in business through such a tough time,” said Robbie.
“Our local bars and restaurants are expected to stay closed until at least July or early August so we want to support them as much as we can as well as bring a little bit of the Edinburgh bar scene to customers across the city who will be missing their favourite bars and restaurants.”
Again, there are two box sizes of gift box available – a small box of four cocktails and one beer for £39, and a large box of six cocktails and one beer for £55. More details available from www.thrivingboxco.com
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