New charity partner for Edinburgh business networking club that has attracted 220 guest speakers

Love Your Business, which runs monthly at the Black Ivy Hotel in Bruntsfield, was founded by Michelle Brown from the eponymous PR agency, started in 2014.

Grassmarket Community Project has been unveiled as the new charity partner of the networking club, which has attracted some 4,500 attendees and 220 guest speakers over the past eight years, including the Californian eco-entrepreneur Paul Tasner from PulpWorks.

The aim of Love Your Business is to help start-ups and growth businesses to share skills, contacts, referrals and support each other.

Speakers who have shared their entrepreneurial and personal journeys over the years include video game guru Chris van der Kuyl, Social Bite co-founder and motivational coach Alice Thompson, and former Scotland international rugby player Scott Hastings.

This month’s speaker, on March 26, is Laura Thomas, the founder of the luxury lifestyle brand Laura Thomas Co, who will be sharing her journey around setting up the business 12 years ago and opening her store in North Berwick four years ago.

This year’s partnership with Grassmarket Community Project will help to raise awareness of the emotional and practical support that the charity provides for vulnerable people in the city to help enhance their life skills, develop confidence, increase their resilience and encourage self-reliance and independence.

The charity was founded 23 years ago and has 33 staff and 116 volunteers. It also has a Coffee Saints café onsite in the Grassmarket and another behind the St James Quarter.

Brown said: “When I first learnt about the Grassmarket Community Project, providing emotional and practical support and services for people in the city who are struggling, I knew immediately I wanted to partner with them to help raise even more awareness of the great work they are doing.”

Helene van der Ploeg, chief executive at Grassmarket Community Project, added: “As a charity incorporating social enterprises we really value this partnership, which will help build vital networks among businesses and increase our profile through Michelle’s extensive marketing knowledge and skills.”