A young artist and her partner who converted a disused outbuilding on the island of Skye into a gallery café clinched the top prize at the annual Moffat Travel and Tourism Awards.
Elly Knight (31) co-founder of The Red Roof Café Gallery won the Moffat Award for best Scottish tourism business with outstanding economic and community impact, and a £1500 cash prize.
The awards were launched in July 2007 by The Prince’s Scottish Youth Business Trust (PSYBT) thanks to generous support from The Moffat Charitable Trust.
Originally from St Andrews, Ms Knight and her partner Craig, moved to the Hebrides in 2007 where she resumed her work as a full-time artist specialising in people, as well as land and seascapes in collages, oils, lino printing and textile sculptures. They decided to convert an old outbuilding on their land in Glendale into a gallery café, and have spent the last two years doing all the restoration work themselves, learning everything there is to know about joinery, carpentry and stone masonry in the process.
Thanks to funding from PSYBT, Elly and Craig have transformed the building which boasts a distinctive red roof and quirky, cosy interiors, into a lively art space and café. All the baking is done on the premises and they try to source all their produce locally wherever possible. In the evenings they offer set menu supper parties featuring live music by local musicians including themselves on guitar, fiddle and vocals.
Winner of the Moffat Award for excellent customer focus and a £1000 cash prize is 24 year old, Alasdair Couzens. He is the founder of Mystery Miles and has written two 12 page booklets featuring self-guided walking trails around St Andrews and more recently the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, helping people of all ages explore the local area while tackling a series of playful puzzles to solve a light-hearted Murder Mystery. Alasdair, who lives in Edinburgh, launched Mystery Miles in March 2010 with a marketing test grant from PSYBT and hopes to replicate the concept across the country.
Winners of the Moffat Award for personal growth and development and a £1000 cash prize are twin brothers, Cameron and Struan Smith (25) who live in Oban. They received a marketing test grant from PSYBT prior to launching a boat transport service between the lochs and islands on the west coast, called Coastal Connection. Founded in November 2008, Coastal Connection provides a private charter and quick island transfer service using two rigid inflatable boats (RIBs). The young entrepreneurs have recently expanded their service to include wildlife excursions, day trips to Tobermory and they are also taking on more commercial work on behalf of clients that have work on the islands.
Red Roof Café Gallery http://www.redroofskye.co.uk
Mystery Miles http://www.mysterymiles.co.uk
Coastal Connection www.coastal-connection.co.uk
