A selection of top entrepreneurs and inspirational speakers are getting set to elevate the audience at a major conference in Aberdeen this month.
The first woman to climb Mount Everest, Polly Murray, and recent BBC apprentice, Aisha Kasim, will both be speaking at the Elevator Conference, ‘Making it Happen’, which is organised by business support and development organisation, Elevator and sponsored by the Clydesdale Bank. The event takes place at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre on Friday, November 20.
Polly has spent a lifetime exploring some of the planet’s most remote destinations, and is the presenter and assistant expedition leader on five of the award-winning BBC “Serious” series.
Aisha Kasim, Aberdeen's First candidate to enter TV series The Apprentice, is founder of Madame Hair. The shop began selling high-quality hair products in the city in 2007, and the rapid success of her company meant that by 2009 she could branch out online and add a secondshop complete with a sales team in Dundee.
This year’s annual free event is set to be the biggest to date, with nine speakers taking to the stage including Polly and Aisha to address morethan 600 business owners, students, pupils and aspiring entrepreneurs.
Other speakers include event host, Gavin Oattes of Tree of Knowledge; Christian Macleod of Christian Macleod; Andrew Dobbie of MadeBrave; Ryan O’Rorke of Flavourly; Rebecca Pick of Pick Protection; and Dragons Den candidate, David Kellock, founder of the Trtl Ltd, the travel pillow, reinvented.
Aberdeen entrepreneurs, Louise Divarquez and Laura Poppe of Bagels & Stuff, will also take to the stage to speak about their business journey to date, which includes winning the MostPromising New Business award in the Elevator Awards 2015.
Professor Gary McEwan, chief executive of Elevator, said: ”Each year we create an inspiring and motivational conference jam-packed full of speakers from a wide range of backgrounds with stories to inspire and encourage our audience of future leaders; whether they are start-up business owners, aspiring entrepreneurs, college, or university students or senior phase school pupils at secondary school.
“This is the biggest conference we have hosted to date, with nine speakers taking to the stage, and we hope that the audience takes motivation from each inspirational story.”
John Brebner, Clydesdale Bank’s city director for Aberdeen, added: “The entrepreneurial spirit of Aberdeen businesses is well represented at this year’s Elevator conference.
“Seeing so many dynamic businesses and entrepreneurs with an appetite for growth is truly inspiring.”