At the third workshop sessions on Tuesday 25th February 2014 we spent time organising all the ideas generated so far (in the previous sessions and through conversations in the community) into clusters, in order to identify the main themes and the priorities of the people of Pitlochry, as well as to make connections between people with complementary ideas.

With over 80 ideas generated by local people with the view to improve the lives of Pitlochry residents there were a lot things that could be taken forward. So within the workshop session we focused on the ideas for which there were people already keen to dedicate their time and energy to make it into reality. Setting up a new venture not only requires ownership, time and commitment, it also carries risks that often cannot be fully ascertained. We discussed this at some length at the workshops and it was widely acknowledged that although not all of the ideas needed to bring an income, they did need to be self-sustaining and not make losses, as many people with a passion for strengthening the community would not be able to finance ventures as well as spend their time on them.

The steps that we discussed in the workshop, to progress towards more detailed project/business plans were:

• What is your product/service?
• Where and how will it be sold?
• Who will buy it?
• How much will it cost you to get started?
• How much do you need to earn?

By the end of the workshops the first steps had already been taken for some ideas, with people claiming ownership to moving forward with testing out their ideas on others in the community to confirm the town’s appetite and support for new incentives. At this stage further support was offered from Growbiz and, community engagement manager, Fiona who pledged to work with individuals in-between workshops to get the ideas a stronger foundation to move forward on.

Growbiz run monthly business peer-support meetings locally and people were invited to join the group, if they were not already members. This additional element of support was particularly useful for people who had not previously started their own business. The support from local business owners would provide them with additional insights into the reality, both thrilling and challenging, of setting up one’s own venture.