Invest in Angus

Navigating the 2025 festive season: Strategies for small businesses
2025-10-30 14:00 - 14:30 UTC
The festive season is a crucial time for small businesses. In this session, Constant Contact’s Dave Charest will share some of the latest trends, challenges and actionable strategies from his organisation’s most recent survey, The Small Business Holiday Outlook 2025.
You’ll hear more about the festive season being a make-or-break time for small businesses in that it generates a substantial portion of their yearly revenue.
Whether you’re hands-on with your marketing or just trying to keep up, this session is designed to give you the most valuable insights and practical tips to help your business thrive through the busy season.
Topics covered in this session:

Why the festive season is absolutely vital
How social media and discounts drive sales
The economic challenges and consumer behaviour that affects business and shopping habits

Lunch and Learn: How to franchise your business
2025-10-31 12:00 - 12:30
Franchising is one of the fastest ways to scale in the UK–- but only if your business is ready.
In this webinar, business growth consultant Julie Clabby will tell you how to turn your successful business into a franchise model that works.
Topics covered in this session:

What franchising really is and how it works
Why you need a proven pilot business, not just an idea
How to make sure your numbers stack up for both you and your franchisees
Why documenting your systems is crucial to success
How to map territories so every franchisee makes the most of their potential

Introduction to Canva
2025-11-03 09:30 - 11:30
Canva is an all-in-one online design tool that makes it simple to create graphics, edit photos/videos and write content.
In this webinar, you’ll learn how to navigate Canva with confidence, starting with a broad overview of what you can create and do with Canva including a live demonstration of the Canva Editor.
We’ll then explore how to:

Design professional printed marketing materials and edit photos with ease.
Create engaging social media content, including videos and images for posts and ads.
Write creative blog content and make stunning presentations.

We’ll finish this beginner’s guide to Canva by looking at some clever strategies for improving how you market your business with your new suite of creative marketing materials.
As a result of attending this webinar, you will gain practical knowledge of the basics of Canva and learn how to save time when marketing your business online. We’ll be focusing on the free features of Canva for this webinar but some paid ‘Canva Pro’ features will be demonstrated also.

Lunch and Learn: How to save cash and carbon
2025-11-03 12:00 - 12:30
Join us for a practical session with small business energy expert Jon Perks on how to save your business cash and carbon from the outset.
The energy market today is fast-moving and finding the right tariff isn’t just about cutting costs – it’s about gaining a real competitive advantage.
In this Lunch and Learn, Jon will explain how to choose the most suitable energy tariff for your small business.
You’ll learn how to interpret your energy consumption (with the help of your smart meter) to make small, simple changes that add up to big savings on both cash and carbon.
You’ll leave with actionable tips on saving time, reducing your bills and shrinking your carbon footprint – all while keeping your business ahead of the curve through the power of data.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to learn how smarter energy choices can help your business save cash and carbon, and grow.
Topics covered in this session:

How to pick the right tariff for your business: Why having the right tariff and shifting consumption can save the earth – in more ways than one
Your energy insights: How to use data from your smart meter to quickly identify where you can cut costs and reduce your carbon footprint, without taking up valuable time
Actionable tips to save cash and carbon: Walk away with practical, easy-to-implement tips that will help your business save money and time, and stay competitive in today’s market

ASSC Regional Gathering: “Green is the New Gold”
2025-11-03 13:00 - 17:00 | Albert Halls, Dumbarton Road, Stirling, FK8 2QL
Are you a self-catering operator, industry professional, or associated business in Scotland’s tourism sector? Don’t miss this essential afternoon of networking, knowledge-sharing, and sector-focused exhibitors – tailored specifically for Scotland’s self-catering community.
Hosted by Fiona Campbell MBE, Chief Executive of the Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers (ASSC), the Gathering will bring together operators, partners, and policy experts to explore practical, actionable ways to build resilience, embrace responsibility, and shape the future of Scottish tourism.
Expect thought-provoking panels, interactive discussion, and meaningful connections with peers across the sector – all designed to leave you inspired, informed, and ready to take your business forward.
Why Attend?

Understand the policies and regulations shaping Scottish tourism.
Discover actionable steps to become a more responsible and competitive self-catering operator.
Build stronger networks with peers, sector leaders, and suppliers.
Leave with clear, practical takeaways to strengthen your business and prepare for the future.

How to create engaging content
2025-11-03 14:00 - 16:00
Producing quality content is an excellent way of helping your customers develop a meaningful relationship with your brand, services and products. In this webinar we will show you how to source and develop a variety of content for your website and social channels.
This session is ideal for businesses that already have a business website or use social media and now want to take it a step further, and develop the skills to show your audience that you are a trusted operator in your field.
We will help you:

Understand what kind of content your customers are looking for
Source, write and deliver that content
Amplify your brand and message and boost engagement online

Work Lean, Grow Fast. Automation for the New Era of Food & Drink
2025-11-04 09:00 - 13:30 | ONE SeedPod, Walton Road, Bucksburn, AB21 9TT
The Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service (SMAS) is committed to helping food and drink businesses boost productivity through Lean techniques and smart capital investment.
In partnership with Opportunity North East, Aberdeenshire Council, and Scottish Enterprise, this event brings together practical insights and live demonstrations. As well as this, attendees will receive a tour of ONE Seedpod, Scotland’s food and drink innovation hub
Whether you’re a small artisan producer or a large-scale manufacturer, this event will show you how Lean and automation can help you scale efficiently, reduce waste, and stay competitive.
Collaborative Robot Demonstration – See automation in action and explore how robotics can be integrated into your production line.
Automation Possibilities for Your Business – Hear directly from Scottish Enterprise’s automation expert on how new technologies can be tailored to your needs.
Interactive Lean Session – Discover how Lean principles – like line balancing and layout optimisation – can prepare your business for automation.
Explore ONE Seedpod – Learn about the kitchen offerings, in-house expertise, hotdesking and meeting room offerings that make ONE SeedPod the home of innovation for the food and drink industry in Scotland.
Industry Networking – Connect with other producers over lunch and hear how they’ve overcome common challenges in scaling and modernising operations.
Scotland’s food and drink sector faces growing pressures – from rising costs to labour shortages. Historically, automation was only accessible to high-volume producers. But today’s solutions are more flexible, affordable, and scalable than ever before.
Lean techniques offer low-cost, high-impact ways to improve productivity. In fact, deploying Lean is often the first step toward successful automation.
This event will help you:

implement basic improvements through engagement and layout design
understand how automation can fit your scale and budget access support from ONE, SMAS, and Scottish Enterprise
understand how the facilities and in house expertise at ONE SeedPod can help your business grow

Spaces are limited. Priority will be given to Food and Drink Manufacturers. Book now to secure your spot!

How to write funding applications
2025-11-04 10:00 - 12:00
Securing funding can be a game-changer — but writing a strong application takes more than just filling out forms.
This webinar will offer tools and insights to help improve your chances of a successful application, including:

Clarifying and communicating your funding need
Building a persuasive business case with clear objectives and costings
Understanding your funder’s priorities and tailoring your language
Presenting evidence that demonstrates impact and credibility
Avoiding common mistakes that lead to rejection
Structuring your application for clarity and relevance

THRIVE+ : Food & Drink Manufacturing for SMEs
2025-11-04 10:30 - 12:00
Session 1: Tuesday 4 November

Session 2: Tuesday 11 November
This event is part of a series of THRIVE+ skills development events delivered by experienced industry trainers.
This 2-session training package will cover the following key topics:
SELF-MANUFACTURING

Areas to think about when setting up food and drink manufacturing
Environmental Health Officer (EHOs) will provide an overview of what EHOs require
Advantages and challenges of manufacturing yourself

CO-MANUFACTURING

Considers before approaching a co-manufacturer
What securities to have in place with a co-manufacturer
Checklist of what to ask a co-manufacturer
How to find co-manufacturers
Hear from a guest speaker who has used a co-manufacturer

This package is aimed at food and drink entrepreneurs and professionals looking to set up manufacturing facilities or build a co-manufacturing relationship. These webinars will also compare the two options and highlight advantages and challenges.
There will be a Q&A section at the end of each session.

Google Analytics – Understand how your website performs
2025-11-04 14:00 - 16:00
Google Analytics is a powerful tool that helps you understand how your website is performing. It helps answer lots of questions, including:

Which marketing channels drive traffic to your site?
What pages are users looking at the most?
What impact does mobile have on your potential customers?

During this webinar, we’ll help you understand how Google Analytics is set up and give you an overview of key reports. We’ll also look at other web analytics tools to help you online.

Bookkeeping essentials
2025-11-05 10:00 - 12:00
At the end of this session, you will be able to:

Implement basic bookkeeping skills across your business
Create a profit and loss account
Understand what expenses can and cannot be claimed
Use financial management to increase revenues and profits
Understand capital and revenue costs and how they are treated

You will also receive a workbook on excel to help you manage and monitor costs and sales.

An introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI) for small businesses
2025-11-05 14:00 - 16:00
You’ve heard of Artificial Intelligence, but do you know how it can help you as you run your business? This practical webinar will explore how AI can help improve your business marketing to be more efficient and cost-effective, through the automatic creation of content for all your digital platforms; as well as helping you better understand your customers and business opportunities.
This webinar will cover:

What is Artificial Intelligence
Current AI tools and systems to use right now (including ChatGPT and MidJourney)
Automating digital content for blogs and social media
Using AI for business strategy and customer profiling
The pros and cons of AI for small businesses

This webinar will help you understand how you can integrate AI into your existing marketing, looking at the potential consequences (good and bad) of Artificial Intelligence, and its impact on small businesses and their customers.

How to deliver low-cost, high impact marketing
2025-11-06 10:00 - 12:00
When budgets are tight, it can be difficult to find the funds for marketing. This webinar will offer marketing tips and advice that you can then use across your business – without bursting the bank.
We will look at:

How marketing extends way beyond what most businesses consider it to be and how it provides opportunities for businesses to make transformational change with little or minimal extra spend
Identifying marketing priorities and using these to reshape your business
The marketing mix as a tool for reviewing how your business plans and delivers its marketing activity
How your marketing activity is delivered successfully and effectively in your business
A series of top tips including the importance of understanding your customers, the core components of a brand, the value of strong and consistent branding, the value of a clear focus and the power of creativity
The many options available with traditional advertising and promotion as a way a company communicates what it does and what it can offer customers, but also looking how this has changed in a world where marketing has moved online
The foundations of effective marketing in a digital age, looking at how your business can grasp new ways of marketing such as social media, web and digital PR

Reaching the Right People: Understanding your Target Market
2025-11-06 10:00 - 16:00 | Westerton Farmers, Laurencekirk, AB30 1RT
The meeting will take place at Westerton Farm with Monitor Farmers, Fiona Smith and Ross Adamson.
The focus will be on understanding markets and how to reach them along with hearing about progress on the development of a cookery school/demonstration concept at Westerton.

THRIVE+ : Crafting Your Compelling Pitch
2025-11-06 10:30 - 11:30
This event is part of a series of THRIVE+ skills development events delivered by experienced industry trainers.
This session is focused on creating a creating a compelling pitch specifically for the food and drink industry. To create a concise, impactful story about your product that will attract investors, buyers, and customers.
This package is aimed at food and drink entrepreneurs in any product category looking to perfect their pitch.
There will be a Q&A section at the end of the session.
Following this event, separate sessions will be organised to provide attendees with the opportunity to practice their 5-minute pitch. These will be individual timeslots with the trainer to enable 121 feedback. These practice pitching sessions will be held w/c 24th November; timeslots will be provided closer to the event.

Expanding Your Market: Progressing from Direct Sales into Retail or Wholesale
2025-11-06 11:00 - 12:30
GrowBiz Enterprise Facilitator Daniel Muir will guide you through the key steps, considerations, and benefits of expanding your sales channels. Daniel has a background in supply chain management and understands the challenges small businesses face when trying to scale. He’ll share practical insights to help you figure out the best way to grow—whether that’s expanding into wholesale, retail, or both.
During the session we’ll explore together:

Retail opportunities – how to position your product for retailers, what motivates them, and how to handle margin expectations while maintaining profitable growth.

Wholesale strategies – how working with wholesalers can increase your reach, reduce logistics challenges, and simplify operations, and what you need to have in place to work with wholesalers.

Practical considerations – from packaging, barcoding, and pallets to stock management and production capacity.

By the end, you’ll see how scaling through retail or wholesale can help you expand beyond your local geography, save time and delivery costs, and drive higher volumes, sales, and revenues.
Finally, we hope you’ll walk away with the clarity and the confidence to take your next step.

What is cyber resilience and why is it important? | Lunch and Learn
2025-11-06 12:00 - 12:30
In an era of constant disruption, cyber threats and regulatory pressure, resilience is no longer optional – it’s critical.
In this webinar, Jack Marley will introduce topics such as cyber security and its relationship to resilience, and how businesses can proactively manage risk, ensure continuity and build trust.
Topics covered in this session:

Understand resilience, why it’s important and how it differs from security
Real-world examples of how organisations are using planning, automation and expertise to go from a reactive to proactive cyber posture
How to get started quickly with a scalable, cost-effective resilience framework tailored to your business

An introduction to business strategy
2025-11-06 13:00 - 15:00
This webinar is practical, outcome driven, and designed to fit with the needs of small businesses in both B2C and B2B environments. It will help you develop a strategically led approach that can turbo charge business growth, identify the core growth strategy(ies) that are right for your business, and develop an action plan.
We will look at:

Your business today – identifying your strengths and areas for development
The key pillars of a business and why balancing all areas is essential for success
Personal and business ambitions and using these to guide strategy development
Ansoff’s Matrix as a tool for identifying core growth strategies
The core components of your business delivery
How to develop a methodical, strategic approach to developing your business for future success

After the webinar, you will understand:

How to undertake a balanced review of where your business is that helps identify areas for development
Ansoff’s Matrix and how to use it as a core strategic planning tool
How to create a strategic plan for growing your business

Pricing strategies to unlock six-figure growth | Lunch and Learn
2025-11-07 12:00 - 12:30
Join author and entrepreneur Vic Taylor for this practical, no-fluff session on how to price your services and products with confidence.
She’ll explore 15 different pricing strategies you can apply in your own business – whether you’re refining an existing offer or bringing something new to market.
Topics covered in this session:

15 pricing strategies you can test in your small business
How to set prices that reflect the true value of your work
How to present your offers confidently and without second-guessing yourself

How to build your brand
2025-11-07 12:00 - 14:00
This webinar will define what a brand is (and is not) and explain how it is more than just creating a logo. We will explore how a business can use their brand to show its identity, purpose, personality, message, and values in order to stand out from competitors, build a loyal customer base and make more sales.
This session will:

Provide you with a clear understanding of the difference between brands and branding
Help you understand what a brand is
Show you why branding is important
Look at your brand strategy, brand identity and action
Help you learn how to develop your brand’s positioning, character, and purpose to differentiate your business from its competitors
Demonstrate how to set up a brand kit and style guide to ensure consistency across websites, social media, business cards, posters etc.
Teach you how to create simple promotional graphics using a variety of tools including Canva
Highlight a variety of free tools including Google Drive, Hubspot and Mailchimp that can save time and simplify marketing tasks

How to start a business: The basics
2025-11-08 10:00 - 12:00
Whatever your reasons may be for considering being your own boss, we are here to support you and help you decide if this is the right path for you.
We will cover:

Personal finance
Planning – how much do you need to earn?
Researching your market – who your customers are, understanding your competition and what the trends are within your chosen field
Business structure – what are the core business structures? How to decide which is right for you and how to register as a business
Creating your start-up action plan – an outline
Marketing
Pricing
Naming the business
Basic bookkeeping
Forecasting
Financing, banking, insurance, and VAT
Tax

How to design an effective sales funnel | Lunch and Learn
2025-11-10 12:00 - 12:30
Are you a small business owner looking to attract more of the right customers and turn interest into consistent sales?
Join us for an interactive session led by Vandita Agarwal designed to help you build, refine, and optimise your customer journey from start to finish.
Topics covered in this session:

Attract and convert the right customers
Design a seamless customer journey
Optimise each stage with data and automation

Social media essentials: Instagram
2025-11-10 14:00 - 2025-12-13 16:00
Thinking about using Instagram to communicate with existing and potential customers? Want to showcase your products or services using it? During this webinar we will cover:

Getting the setup right and benefitting from the available business tools
Best practice profiles, and some strategies to help your business stand out from the crowd
The types of audience you can reach via this platform and the factors and analytics such as cost and timing of posting images and how that can maximise impact
The various types of content you can post to Instagram, from regular posts to Stories and Reels

Social media essentials: Facebook
2025-11-10 18:00 - 20:00
Get to grips with Facebook – the world’s most popular social networking platform.
In this webinar you will:

Learn how to get the most out of Facebook and how it could fit into your business’s digital marketing strategy
Better understand the algorithm behind Facebook, and how to create great content that achieves a bigger reach and impact
Learn from the stats and data you can get from the system and discover who your most interested customers/clients are
Understand the power of Facebook advertising, and other selling options available to you
Discover other business opportunities presented by Facebook, including how to promote and sell products and services
Be introduced to ‘Business Suite’ – a free Facebook dashboard to manage all your business activity

Thorntons Webinar - Update for Sponsors
2025-11-11 09:30 - 10:30
The immigration landscape has changed significantly this year, with major changes to the Skilled Worker visa route and immigration enforcement action at an all time high.
For sponsors, this means that keeping on top of duties is more important than ever to protect your organisation from a civil penalty, now starting at £45,000.
Join Rebecca Engel-Morton, Solicitor, and Catriona MacDonald, Senior Caseworker, to find out what sponsors need to know.

Future proofing your business
2025-11-11 10:00 - 11:00
A combination of game-changing trends are driving transformative change in Scotland and the rest of the world. Geopolitical tensions, emerging technologies and a global skills squeeze, for example, mean that today’s world is often uncertain and volatile.
This first in a series of free webinars, hosted by Scottish Enterprise, will explore the background and research behind these megatrends and how you can build your business resilience considering them.
Speakers:

Ewan Mearns Team Leader Strategy and Performance Scottish Enterprise
Simone Boeklaar Head of Horizon Scanning Innovate UK

Simone Boeklaar will discuss:

What is futures thinking?
How futures thinking can help businesses identify new innovation opportunities and to develop strategies for to prepare for disruptors.
Why should businesses care about futures thinking?

As Scotland’s national economic development agency, Scottish Enterprise tracks the trends that are likely to shape Scotland’s economic future.
Ewan Mearns will discuss:

An introduction to the four megatrends identified by Scottish Enterprise that are shaping Scotland’s future economy
An overview of the practical ways businesses can respond to future external trends and how Scottish Enterprise can help

An introduction to business websites
2025-11-11 10:00 - 12:00
This webinar will take you through all the steps required to design, build and host a business website. You will learn about:

The need to determine website objectives
The importance of knowing who your audience is and measuring results
Setting clear calls to action and creating engaging content
Creating your brand’s visual identity online, your site’s blueprint and how you can structure your site map
What’s involved in registering your domain, maintaining your site content, and options for hosting it

This webinar will also offer guidance on when and how to outsource your website development, covering topics such as choosing a suitable content management system, what to organise first and costing for the work.

How to start prioritising what matters | Lunch and Learn
2025-11-11 12:00 - 12:30
Time is a precious commodity for small businesses, yet it’s often overlooked or mismanaged.
With a unique blend of advocacy and research expertise, Tammy Whalen Blake, founder of the Yellow Mastermind, brings a fresh perspective to time management. This webinar will be informative and inspire actionable change.
Topics covered in this session:

The multi-role dilemma and its impact on businesses
How to prioritise tasks effectively and focus on high-impact activities that drive growth and profitability.
Proven strategies for balancing a number of responsibilities and being as productive as possible

AI Panel Discussion
2025-11-11 12:00 - 13:00 | The Flour Mill, 34 Commercial Street, Dundee, DD1 3EJ
Join us for an exciting AI Panel Discussion at the Flour Mill Dundee.
Our expert panelists will delve into the world of artificial intelligence, discussing its impact on various industries and its future implications.
Whether you’re a tech enthusiast or just curious about AI, this event is perfect for gaining insights and engaging in thought-provoking discussions.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to expand your knowledge and network with like-minded individuals.

How to build a digital marketing plan
2025-11-11 14:00 - 16:00
This webinar will guide you through the steps needed to create an effective digital marketing strategy, ensuring you focus on the right tactics to meet your business objectives and goals.
We will cover:

The importance of planning your digital marketing activities
Building your plan around a simple framework
Conducting a situational analysis (and understanding customers and competitors)
Developing your brand and tone of voice
Planning your content strategy
Prioritising digital channels
Evaluating your Digital Marketing efforts
