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West Edinburgh is a vibrant commercial centre, home to flagship offices for leading international companies and a hub for national and international transport links.

Scotland’s capital offers an unrivalled quality of life and is the perfect place to live, invest and do business. With the highest Foreign Direct Investment of any key UK city, Edinburgh is Scotland’s fastest growing city, awarded Best Large City by FDI magazine in their European Cities and Regions of the Future for 2012/2013.

With a competitive cost structure, four world-class universities and excellent infrastructure, find out why your business should be in West Edinburgh.

IntroductionThe performance of Edinburgh’s economy has been relatively strong

through the economic downturn. The Centre for Cities, identified

Edinburgh as well positioned to support natural growth due to its

diverse employment base, high skill levels and low reliance on

welfare. The city has one of the strongest economies in the UK

outside London.

Edinburgh has had the highest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of all

the key major UK cities. Some 45.3% of the working population hold

degree or degree equivalent qualifications (highest in the UK after

Cambridge and Oxford).

A major attraction for inward investing companies is the quality

of life and significantly lower labour costs and labour churn relative

to London and south-east England. Edinburgh has been described

as the only large UK city in the top 10 for “economic potential”.

It is heartening to note that the city has been described as having

the best FDI strategy of any large European city. We look forward

through this initiative to assisting property owners, occupiers,

investors and developers to maximise the potential of West

Edinburgh and, in the process, increase the level of inward locations

and further strengthen and diversify the city’s economy.

Councillor Frank Ross

Convenor of the Economy Committee

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OpportunitiesFrom British Telecom, Aegon, Heineken and HSBC to Tesco Bank

and JP Morgan - businesses located in West Edinburgh are in the

best of company.

With four universities in the city, leading businesses are attracted

to Edinburgh’s highly-skilled labour pool. Exceptional connections

across the central belt place Scotland’s first class workforce within

easy reach.

Excellent local shopping and leisure opportunities make West

Edinburgh a satisfying location for employees with easy transport

links into the city centre. Only minutes away, Edinburgh Airport

is Scotland’s international hub, serving over 9 million passengers

annually.

Our website at www.westedinburgh.com provides information

on prime office space available with over 450,000 square feet in

move-in condition.

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ConnectivitySeamlessly connected by road, rail and air, the area enjoys the best

transport connections in the city and benefits from a sustained

programme of improvements to local and national rail services.

At an intersection of arterial roads, West Edinburgh is also served

by frequent, award winning bus services from Lothian Buses and

other providers. Frequent rail services connect to the city centre

and beyond, while light rail services will operate in 2014 placing

Edinburgh Airport less than 10 minutes away by tram.

Infrastructure in the city is first rate, with superfast fibre broadband

available to over 80% of properties and due to reach over 90%

by 2015*

(*source: OFCOM, maps.ofcom.org.uk/broadband)

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SupportAt the heart of the Scottish economy, Edinburgh is well supported

by initiatives from local and national government to assist inward-

locating businesses and help them to thrive.

City of Edinburgh Council

www.edinburgh.gov.uk

• Providing support for businesses locating in Edinburgh, including

advice on labour, property & planning

• Working closely with developers to utilise existing office space

and vacant sites, we can offer advice on where you would be

best to locate

Scottish Development International

www.sdi.co.uk

• Helping companies benefit from Scotland’s business and research

opportunities, SDI can help identify and access funding & grants

and provides a comprehensive investor support programme.

• Their comprehensive investor support programme includes:

• Marketing and market research assistance

• Business development support

• PR services

• Investment advice

• Specialised training

Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce

www.edinburghchamber.co.uk

• Strengthening the position of its members to ensure that the

interests of local businesses are heard; the Chamber can help any

size of company at any stage of development to grow and prosper.

Invest Edinburgh

www.edinburgh-inspiringcapital.com

• Provides valuable economic data for Edinburgh

• Highlights the advantages of investing in Scotland’s capital city

• Provides latest news for investors in the city.

Business Gateway

www.bgateway.com

• Offers a range of professional resources, support and tools

to help businesses learn new skills, create new opportunities

and develop strategy.

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Why your business should be in West EdinburghWest Edinburgh is the fourth largest office location in Scotland after

Edinburgh as a whole, Glasgow and Aberdeen. With an estimated

total stock of 4,500,000 sqft (418,060 sqm) and with some 450,000

sqft (41,806 sqm) of available space, it offers inward locating

businesses the opportunity to benefit from significantly reduced

total occupation costs whilst benefiting from a highly-skilled and

diverse labour pool along with the other benefits of Edinburgh.

The West Edinburgh marketing initiative has been set up under the

auspices of the Council and the property industry with assistance

from Scottish Enterprise, the Edinburgh Business Forum and a

number of Edinburgh’s partners.

A significant amount of the available space provides “plug and play”

opportunities for occupiers enabling an immediate “soft landing”

when arriving in the city, reducing initial start up costs and timing.

The quality and diversity of the accommodation situated over

ten business parks within West Edinburgh ensures a range of styles

and quality of office accommodation to meet with the needs of

differing occupiers.

Launches of Connect at West Edinburgh will take place in Edinburgh,

London and at MIPIM during 2013.

The new website provides a “one-stop shop” for organisations

searching for floor space, blending the attractions and benefits

of Edinburgh with the practical essentials of finding suitable

accommodation and linking new companies to the city and to the

various partners working with the city, Scottish Enterprise and SDI.

The Edinburgh Business Forum thoroughly endorses this initiative

and intends to support the various partners in delivering further

economic growth and prosperity for Scotland’s capital.

Hugh Rutherford

Chair of the Edinburgh Business Forum

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www.westedinburgh.com @west_edinburgh

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