Brewing in the Borders: the businesses thriving along Scotland's new railway line
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Version 0 of 1. The proud boast of Tempest Brewing is “designed and built in the Scottish borders” – and this small craft brewery has taken its own words to heart. It’s been able to expand in part because of where it is now based, close to the new Tweedbank railway station. Annika Meiklejohn, the brewery’s director, explains that before its move from Kelso to the Tweedbank industrial estate, Tempest found it hard to retain staff, many of whom travel from Edinburgh. Now, a third of its 15 staff make regular use of the new station close to the brewery. Tempest, which tripled sales and began exporting in the year following its move in 2015, chose the new location as it is a few minutes’ walk from the station at the southern end of the Borders railway. “We knew it would have a big impact on our ability to attract talent from elsewhere,” says Meiklejohn. While the brewery employs locals, it has also recruited specialist staff, including its digital marketing and brand manager, who commutes from Glasgow. “She wouldn’t be able to work here if it weren’t for the train,” says Meiklejohn, who adds that the rail service makes business meetings easier and has helped the brewery to start its own beer festival. She reckons that about half the people who came to its first Oktoberfest last year took the train. The Waverley line from Edinburgh to Carlisle was closed in January 1969 as part of the Beeching cuts, with the 35 miles to Tweedbank reopened by the Queen in September 2015, having cost £350m to reinstate. Service should take just under an hour, but the line has suffered from frequent breakdowns and delays. Last September the Scottish government ordered a review, with some problems caused by the line being more popular than expected with 1 million passengers in its first year. Despite the issues, several businesses near stations have taken on staff since the line re-opened, including Spark Energy and contact centre operator Hinduja Global Solutions, both of which have offices in Selkirk. It’s all very encouraging for the local council. Stuart Bell, Scottish Borders council’s executive member for economic development, says the Borders railway isn’t just about taking Borders residents to jobs elsewhere but is about bringing jobs into the region. “We think, we know, there’s a clear link,” he says. Entrepreneurs, too, like the new link. Data from the Federation of Small Businesses shows that Melrose, just east of Tweedbank, has nearly twice Scotland’s average level of self-employment. “They are in a lovely part of the world, and now with great connectivity,” says Bell. But it’s not just a hunch. There are figures to back up the impact of the new railway – and tourism appears to be benefitting strongly. There’s been a big boost, with a 27% increase in the number of hotel beds being occupied, a 20% increase in visitor spending on food and drink, and an 8% increase in tourism-related employment, according to research by the Scottish Tourism Economic Assessment Monitor. Sir Walter Scott’s home at Abbotsford, a mile from Tweedbank station, enjoyed its best ever visitor numbers in the months following the line’s reopening. In 2016, it recorded a 10% increase in independent visitors who were not part of an organised group. “Primarily we saw that growth from people who live in the Edinburgh area or who were holidaying in the Edinburgh area and making a day trip,” says Giles Ingram, chief executive of the Abbotsford trust, who believes the increase can be directly attributed to the new railway. Both the trust and Scottish Borders council have worked to exploit the new service. The council has established two signposted walking routes from Tweedbank station to Abbotsford, one along the Tweed river, and has included the house on a bus route that links Tweedbank and Galashiels stations with Melrose. The trust has increased advertising in Scotland’s capital and organised trips for its tourist information advisers, including those who work at Edinburgh’s Waverley station, from where Tweedbank trains depart. Ingram points out that the station is named after one of Scott’s novels and is near a monument to the author on Princes Street: “There’s a wonderful connectivity.” It has taken decades of lobbying to get the line reinstated, points out Bell, at the council, who also says it had to convince operator Abellio ScotRail to treat the railway as a tourism attraction rather than just a commuter line. The case for reopening other lines may vary, but Bell has advice for those on the campaign trail: “Persistence, patience and a damn-you determination is what they need.” Talk to us on Twitter via @Guardianpublic and sign up for your free weekly Guardian Public Leaders newsletter with news and analysis sent direct to you every Thursday. |