Treat yourself
WE live in straitened economic times. But Douglas Wood, owner of wine and spirits merchant WoodWinters, says a good bottle of wine remains an affordable treat.
Mr Wood said: “People spend £20 a month on a car sitting on a driveway doing nothing, and don’t think about it. The fact [is] that you can spend £10 on a bottle of wine and share it with two people. That’s next to nothing. Yes, people are worried, people are concerned, but I think it is affecting other areas of the economy more [than] wine.”
We’ll drink to that.
On the edge
JILL Henry, founder of urban cycle clothing brand Meander Apparel, is unlikely to forget her experience taking part on the recent Virgin Strive Challenge.
Ms Henry was the only entrepreneur from a Scottish start-up to take part in the first stage of the challenge, which began in Sardinia at the end of August and continued through Italy and France, all the way to the summit of Mont Blanc.
She said: “The stage I was involved in consisted of four days cycling through Sardinia, completing over 100 kilometres per day, with 2000-metre climbs, followed by two days’ sea kayaking around the Alghero Gulf.
“The final stage ended in Mont Blanc last Saturday and I believe that the Branson family are lucky to be alive, after rocks came crashing seconds away from Sir Richard and Sam, as they were approaching the summit of Mont Blanc. It goes to show that this is a very tough and real challenge.”
Virtual first
TECH fans have been treated to the first glimpse of Axis Studios’ first virtual reality project.
The Glasgow-based animation and visual effects specialist, which has worked with the likes of Netflix and Amazon Studios, showcased “The Bond” at Skypark’s first ever technology and animation visual effects festival.
The event was staged to highlight the work of the technology and creative specialists based at the business park, including space pioneers Spire Global and Clyde Space, product designers Filament FD and Freedom One Life, and Finding Your Feet, which is designing 3D printed prosthetics with R3nder.
Richard Scott of Axis said: “The Bond was a completely self-initiated project from start to end: all initial concept art and pre-visualisation work, animation, and lighting was completed internally at the studio. This is an incredibly exciting time for Axis and Scotland’s creative industries.”
Harvest of world
RUNNING a wine merchant means keeping an eye on ever-changing global climatic conditions, as WoodWinters’ Douglas Wood notes.
Speaking to The Bottom Line, which is about as far from an authority on wine as one might imagine, Mr Wood explained that if a vineyard has a good harvest which yields plenty of grapes, the price of their wines will come down. A short harvest leads to higher prices. “You will have that in different countries,” Mr Wood said. “South Africa is amazing value at the moment.”
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