Press release
20 February 2014
VIRGIN MONEY BRINGS SIR RICHARD BRANSON TO EDINBURGH FOR THE
SCOTTISH BUSINESS AWARDS 2014

Sir Richard Branson will engage 1,600 business people in an open discussion hosted
by ITV news presenter Alastair Stewart

Sir Richard Branson will offer his views on business as a force for good

The discussion with Sir Richard will open the prestigious Scottish Business Awards
2014, sponsored by Virgin Money and hosted by comedian, Michael McIntyre

Taking place at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre on 12 May, the evening
aims to take the total raised for charity by the Scottish Business Awards since 2012
through the £1 million barrier
The Scottish Business Awards 2014 will be sponsored by Virgin Money. As part of its support for the
evening, Virgin Money has confirmed that Sir Richard Branson will join the celebration of Scottish
business at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre on 12 May 2014. The evening will be
hosted by internationally acclaimed comedian Michael McIntyre.
The Scottish Business Awards is attended annually by more than 1,600 people from the business
community and has developed a reputation as the premier event in the business calendar. The
awards evening aims to recognise excellence in Scottish business and particularly looks to celebrate
those who are building and leading dynamic businesses in Scotland. By recognising the contribution of
people who inspire others with their vision, the ultimate aim of the event is to encourage enterprise
and entrepreneurialism in future generations of Scottish business.
Thanks to the support of Virgin Money, Sir Richard will take part in an open Q&A hosted by legendary
journalist and news presenter, Alastair Stewart. Sir Richard will focus on social and responsible
business behaviour and offer his views on how business can be a force for good, and why doing
business in an ethical manner is so important to achieving strong and enduring financial results.
He follows a prestigious list of Scottish Business Awards speakers including President Bill Clinton and
Sir Bob Geldof.
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This year’s event aims to break through the £1 million mark in funds raised for charity in just 3 years.
This year’s charity auction will include some fantastic prizes to enable that to be achieved, and the
funds raised at this year’s event will benefit Scottish Business in the Community and Virgin Unite.
Jayne-Anne Gadhia, CEO of Virgin Money and Chair of Scottish Business in the Community said: “I
am delighted that Virgin Money is supporting the Scottish Business Awards 2014 and that we are able
to bring Sir Richard to Edinburgh. It is a rare opportunity to have him here in person, and this is a great
opportunity for business people in Scotland to hear his views on business as a force for good and to
hear his exciting plans for the future of the Virgin Group”
.
Scottish Business Awards Chair, Sir Tom Hunter, added: “The Scottish Business Awards are the
biggest and best, and this year’s will be brilliant. Sir Richard Branson in an open conversation? Say no
more, just get involved!”
Josh Littlejohn, Event Organiser said: “It was a tough task to arrange someone to follow in the
footsteps of Bill Clinton, but with the help of Virgin Money we have been able to do just that. Sir
Richard Branson is a great fit with these awards in every respect”.
“I am also really excited about the possibility of breaking through the £1 million fundraising target in
just 3 years of the Scottish Business Awards. We have some superb charity auction prizes and we
hope that the funds raised will enable both Scottish Business in the Community and Virgin Unite do
further good here in Scotland and across the world.”
ENDS
Media Contacts
Josh Littlejohn, Event Organiser
Tel: 07525370933
j.littlejohn@capital-events.co.uk
Brian Giles, Head of Communications,
Virgin Money
Tel: 0191 279 4676
press.office@virginmoney.com
Karen Davidson, Head of Communications and Development
Scottish Business in the Community
Tel: 0131 451 1107
KarenDavidson@sbcscot.com
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Notes to Editors:
Virgin Money
Virgin Money provides savings, mortgages, credit cards, pensions, investment and protection
products. Virgin Money’s business ambition is to make “everyone better off” – this philosophy
underpins our approach to business by offering good value to customers, treating employees well,
making a positive contribution to society and delivering a profit to shareholders. Virgin Money is the
official sponsor of the London Marathon, the biggest annual one-day fundraising event in the world.
Virgin Money leads the London Marathon sponsorship with the ambition to help runners raise £¼
billion over 5 years and will use its infrastructure, online capability and financial expertise to deliver
that through Virgin Money Giving.
Virgin Unite
Virgin Unite is the not-for--profit foundation of the Virgin Group. It unites great people and
entrepreneurial ideas, reinventing how we live and work to help make people’s lives better. Virgin
Unite believes that business can and must be a force for good in the world – and that this is also good
for business. The team incubates new approaches to leadership and amplifies Sir Richard’s voice on
issues that are important to the world. It also supports entrepreneurs as they launch and grow
businesses, creating jobs and opportunities. And finally, Virgin Unite works across the Virgin Group
and beyond, helping businesses to innovate and prioritise people and the planet alongside profits.
Scottish Business in the Community
Scottish Business in the Community (SBC) is a registered charity and one of the Prince’s Charities.
Through a variety of projects and programmes, SBC works with businesses and communities to
address social and environmental issues and help Scotland thrive. From tackling poverty to helping
businesses to deliver more social value, all of its activities are true collaborations addressing real
needs in order to secure a fairer society and a more sustainable future.
The Scottish Business Awards
The Scottish Business Awards is the nation’s largest business dinner. Organisers hope to have over
2,000 people in attendance this year, which will make it the biggest formal dinner gathering in Scottish
history. The event is owned by the same parent charity as Social Bite, a chain of social enterprise
sandwich shops, which employs homeless people and donates its profits to good causes. Tables at
the Scottish Business Awards are on sale now. More details can be found at
www.scottishbusinessawards.co.uk
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