One of the north-east’s most respected business figures will share advice from his many years’ experience with fellow entrepreneurs as part of a special event to be held in Aberdeen later this month.
Duncan Skinner – along with his colleague Collette Norval – will speak to delegates about the success of their social enterprise, Social Stuff Ltd, since its launch in 2016 as part of a Meet the Entrepreneur-style event.
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Event organiser The TechForce, which provides cyber security, security awareness training, and managed IT services for high-growth businesses, has announced the latest instalment in its popular Entrepreneurs Club series, which will be held at Barclays Bank, Union Plaza on Wednesday, November 22 from 6:30pm to 9pm.
Mr Skinner is the former chief financial officer of PSN and played a pivotal role in its sale to Wood Group. In 2009, he devoted his time and energy to rescue social enterprise Glencraft from the threat of liquidation and inject new life into the business.
Since transforming Glencraft into a successful, sustainable organisation and helping countless people, Mr Skinner established another social enterprise, Social Stuff, that manufactures sports snoods and donates 100% of its profits to charity.
Mr Skinner is also chairman of Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust (AFCCT) and holds positions with several charitable causes and organisations across Scotland. In 2013, he was awarded the Social Entrepreneur of the Year honour at the Ernst & Young Awards.
TechForce managing director Jai Aenugu runs the Entrepreneurs Club to support and inspire the next generation of start-ups. A series of regular ‘Meet the Entrepreneur’ events are held across Aberdeen, Dundee, and Inverness, featuring talks with leading business figures who have launched and run their own successful companies.
He said: “Having met Duncan and Collette and followed their story closely since the launch of Social Stuff, I am thrilled they have agreed to take time out of their busy schedules and talk about the importance of CSR and giving back in the current climate.
“Duncan is a terrific role model; not just for what he has achieved in business, but also for his drive and determination to support charities, social enterprises and other worthy causes. I’m sure the event will be a huge source of inspiration to the other entrepreneurs in the room.”
Collette Norval, managing director at Social Stuff, said: “Duncan and I are both looking forward to the chance to speak to business people who share the same entrepreneurial passion and values as we do.
“We’ve achieved a lot in our first year of trading with our product SQUAD and, like most start-ups, we’ve overcome our fair share of challenges. It’s great to be able to share some of the lessons we’ve learned with other aspiring and established entrepreneurs, and share our social impact story at the same time.”
The free-to-attend event is supported by main sponsor Barclays, along with Precise Communications and SBNN. To register your place, please visit http://bit.ly/2yF4168.
In 2016, Jai Aenugu won the Entrepreneurial Supporter of the Year honour at the Elevator Awards in recognition of his dedication to helping raise the profile of start-ups and established firms across the north-east through a series of video podcasts, interviews, and events.
