What lures the rich, the famous and the powerful to Scotland? Turrets and battered Chippendales.
Corporate bookers are seeing a rise in demand from America and elsewhere for ‘exclusive use’ rental of the country’s grander properties by those seeking authentic baronial splendour
BY KEVIN O’SULLIVAN “Y
ou’d be surprised what people go for. Some like that couthy feel - a Lady, her dogs,
and some antique furniture that’s falling to bits. Others prefer the deluxe, five-star feel. Tere’s huge variation in what the client market wants - fortunately we’ve got the lot here in Scotland,” says James Aitken, President of the Scottish Chapter of SITE, the Society of Incentive Travel Excellence. We’re discussing the seeming
rise in popularity in recent years for some of Scotland’s grander proper- ties to be taken up on an ‘exclusive use’ basis, by a diverse mix of clients, ranging, of course, from the very lucrative weddings market to corpo- rate meetings and incentive travel. It is the latter I am interested in and although we do talk about the par- ticular property owned by the lady in question, I feel it would be a bit chippy to refer directly to the state of her Chippendales. Nevertheless, and this is the point, the appetite for authenticity drives many a corporate booker to Scotland’s shores, and the recent Brexit vote - as much as it hard to foresee the long-term picture - has caused a downward push on Sterling, making the UK an even more attractive destination for overseas-based event organisers. Te upsides of this may well be seen in October where more than
6,000 buyers and sellers will take the global ‘MICE’ (Meetings, Incen- tives, Conferences and Exhibitions) caravan to Las Vegas, as they gather for the IMEX America event. It’s an opportunity for Scotland - supported by VisitScotland’s Events Director- ate - to really showcase what the country has to offer, particularly to a North American clientele which seems to revel in the lure and ro- mance of the Highlands. “Tere’s no question that events
like these are really important,” adds Aitken. “We alone (his company is Cashel Travel) do about 10-15% of our business along these lines. It’s becoming very popular now and it seems to be an easy sell because the clients love being a Laird for a couple of days.” Another factor which draws inter-
national business to Scottish country homes is privacy. Clients, particular- ly from the corporate market, often want to take their board of directors to somewhere quiet and remote to avoid any unwanted attention. “Te banking industry was known
to go for properties like Archerfield House [in Dirleton, East Lothian],” adds Aitken. “For a time they did very well out of it; bankers would have their meetings but didn’t want to be seen having meetings [he’s talking post 2007-recession]. “But now we tend to get requests
for a couple of days where clients will have a meeting but they also want to do some incentive stuff on the back it as well. So activities,
meetings, an evening out and a bit of culture, it’s those kind of packages which are in demand.” Tose activities range from the
traditional and refined outdoor pursuits such as grouse shooting, salmon fishing with a gillie, to a bit of 4x4 off-roading. And as for the properties them-
selves, there are enough Scottish castles in the baronial style and neglected country houses that have been, for want of a better term, ‘pimped up’ with all the modern creature comforts, to keep the indus- try going for quite some time. “Tere’s no shortage of places,”
adds Aitken. “Tat’s the key. We do work with lots of different collec- tions now, from the falling down to the ultra-modern. Both have their charm and appeal, it just depends what the client wants.”
n CANDACRAIG HOUSE, STRATHDON, ABERDEENSHIRE When it comes to a property with a bit of star quality, there can be few places with a pedigree to match Candacraig House. Te conical tur- reted property in Strathdon, Aber- deenshire, was until two years ago owned by comedian and movie star Billy Connolly and his wife Pamela Stephenson and, before them, Anita and Gordon Roddick, founders of Te Body Shop. Today, the 12-bed- roomed property is owned by New
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