Scotland is known for its whisky – we’re proud producers and exporters, and rightly so when it means so much to our economy and heritage.

Last year, according to The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), 1.9 million tourists visited whisky distilleries across Scotland, up 11.4 per cent from 2016.

In a time where Japanese and American whisky (or bourbon) is thought to increasingly rival our own product, it’s comforting to know Scotland remains a world leader when it comes to sheer visitor pulling power.

Although perhaps surprising, the marked growth in these numbers shouldn’t be seen as a shock. Distilleries across the country have made major investments over the last year, focussing importantly on improving visitor experience.

Famed Scottish brand, The Macallan, alone spent £140 million on its new distillery and visiting centre, on the Easter Elchies estate at Craigellachie.

The showpiece is part of £500 million investment into the brand. The new distillery, designed by the same people behind Heathrow’s Terminal 5, opened in May, took three years to complete, and is expected to win architectural awards – and for £140 million, it should.

It even has one of the most complicated roofs in the world, comprising of more than 350,000 individual components that help to make it look like part of the land.

Other distilleries have introduced interactive experiences while extending their hours to accommodate more guests. Global liqueur brand, Diageo, has committed £150 million towards whisky tourism in Scotland, including a new Johnnie Walker visitor centre in Edinburgh.

The group saw nearly half a million people go through its 12 whisky distilleries in 2017.

Not only has visitation gone up but spending at distilleries has gone up along with it – a whopping 15.6 per cent or just under £61 million, according to SWA. Visitors making up these numbers are drawn from all over the world, with the highest numbers coming from Germany and the US, closely followed by Japan, China and India.

Given that it’s Scotland’s largest export, it’s reassuring to see the numbers reflecting what we think ought to be the case.

The US clearly think that Scotch is really worth spending money on - £922 million in 2017 - making it the largest export destination of our product. 

While President Trump has enforced high tariffs on steel and aluminum from the EU, Canada and Mexico, as well as 25 per cent of up to £152 billion of Chinese goods, it seems he has a soft spot for our whisky.

At the end of July, Trump and EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced they will be moving towards a zero-tariff deal between the two nations. Since the EU imposed a 25 per cent import tariff on bourbon and American whisky, fears surrounding US retaliation were mounting.

Whether Trump’s personal preference for Scotch has influenced this decision we’ll never know, but we’re certainly not complaining.

It could even be argued that Americans might value our liquor more so than our own government. In every £4 spent on a bottle of Scotch in the UK, £3 goes to the government in tax, said Karen Betts, chief executive of the SWA. Breaking it down, that’s 75 per cent.

I applaud the companies who have invested funds into the industry. However, my heart does go out to the smaller distilleries who cannot afford to do so.

The high taxes in this industry, meant to bolster our economy, could in fact, be the death of it. It’ll be interesting to see if it rises in the Autumn Budget.

If they do, the millions invested could be for naught – and that would really go against the grain.

 

SIDE

The tourism board in Glasgow must have been rubbing its hands together when the latest Travel Trends data report was revealed.

The Office for National Statistics reported that the number of tourists visiting Glasgow rose 19 per cent in 2017 compared to 2016. Expenditure also rose in Glasgow by more than a third to a staggering £319 million.

This growth meant that Glasgow outperformed all other cities in Scotland with the average increase recorded as 17 per cent and spending at national level up 23 per cent to £2.3 billion.

It's great to see such positive figures being recorded for Glasgow and I'd like to think that the legacy of the 2014 Commonwealth Games and other major events in recent years like Celtic Connections, the World Pipe Band Championships, and World Irish Dancing Championships, have all been contributing factors.

That's not to mention the regular music, comedy and conference events that occur throughout the year. The city has also just embarked on another major event as it co-hosts the European Championships so it shows no sign of stopping.

It's also really positive that the figures for Scotland as a whole are increasing. This is a fantastic opportunity for a multitude of businesses to capitalise on the increased popularity of our country and build on that growth trend.

It's especially encouraging that as visitor numbers rise, spending rises too so I would encourage current and aspiring business people to invest in Scotland and let’s hope these results are a sign of more to come for the country.

 

LAUGH

This week we saw the launch of Edinburgh Fringe 2018 and the laughs have already starting flowing – but you don't even need to travel to the capital to hear the punchlines thanks to some clever tech.

If you're an owner of a smart speaker such as Google Home or Amazon Echo you'll be able to enjoy this year’s top festival jokes from the comfort of your sofa. 

You'll just need to ask your device for a "late night laugh" and you'll receive a short stand-up clip, which has been performed that very day, in return.

With more than 50,000 performances scheduled at the 2018 event, you'll receive a fresh joke every day and there's sure to be something to amuse even the most dour-faced among us.

 

WEEP

I’m not particularly sad about anything this week – just utterly jealous of Apple’s vast riches.

It’s staggering to note that the tech giant has just become the world’s first publicly traded company to be valued at $1 trillion – a truly mind-boggling figure for just about anyone.

It’s amazing to think that in 1997, the company was close to bankruptcy, then Steve Jobs returned and the rest is history.

Now a huge slice of the world’s population walks around with an iPhone in its pocket, seeks its entertainment from an iPad, or does work in front of an Apple computer.

It’s also an inspiring turnaround for anyone who’s struggled in business or seen their company fail.

 

From that to the first trillion dollar valuation in just 20 years – not bad progress.