These are good times to be a relocation agent. The Countryside Agency estimates that 115,000 Britons migrate to rural locations in Scotland every year, many with a view to full- or part-time homeworking.
New figures from the Registrar General also confirm Scotland as a hot spot for those working within the finance, academic and business sectors. It’s estimated that, between now and 2024, West Lothian will see the largest influx of newcomers in Scotland, with its population expected to rise by 21%. In the same period, the Borders should see an increase of 15%, rural East Lothian can expect growth of 13%, and Edinburgh, home of Scotland’s parliament — and legal and financial powerbases — will grow by 10%. The majority of this growth, it’s claimed, will be attributable to relocation.
These are projections that the Scottish Premier League (SPL) footballers Greg Shields and Andrew Tod hope to exploit with their latest venture, a national relocation agency called B-relocated. The Dunfermline Athletic defenders are planning for a career after football and argue that they have more experience than most people of being uprooted.
In a 12-year professional career that began at Rangers and has taken in stops at Kilmarnock, Charlton, Walsall and Dunfermline, Shields, 29, has built up a network of industry contacts and the requisite experience of relocation.
Tod, 34, whose past clubs include Bradford, Stockport and SPL postings at Dundee United, Hearts and Dunfermline, explains that B-relocated was born from bitter personal experience.
Advertisement
“As a footballer, relocating comes with the territory,” he says. “Deals are done and before you know it you can be whisked away to an unfamiliar area. Despite the money that our industry invests in transfers, most clubs do little or nothing to help their assets settle. Only once, when I played in the Premiership with Bradford, was I assigned a relocation agent. I settled quickly and the agent’s thoroughness is something we hope to emulate with B-relocated.”
Shields says: “Some people will think we’re just a couple of pampered footballers who know nothing about property or running a successful business. But the reality is that most footballers are extremely resourceful and organised in order to maintain a happy home life — they can then be focused on performing at the highest level on the pitch.”
Liz Potter of Scott’s Relocation in Edinburgh confirms that an attractive relocation package is now an expected component of most executive job offers. “It’s the idea that a happy, settled member of staff is a productive member of staff. Some people will say why should I waste my money on a relocation agent when there is so much information freely available online? I’d say that an internet search is no substitute for local knowledge. Unlike an estate agent, we’ ll happily draw up a list of both the negatives and positives of any potential home. Our view is that we’re in it for the long haul and we want to make your move swift, successful and stressless.”
The going rate for a comprehensive relocation package to Scotland can cost anything between £2,000 to £4,000, but it’s a price many bluechip HR departments are prepared to pay to keep staff motivated and to attract the highest calibre candidates for their vacancies.
Based in the Fife commuter town of Dalgety Bay, B-relocated will deal with everything from viewings through removals to managing renovations.
Advertisement
David Alexander of the letting agency DJ Alexander says: “It’s all about establishing yourself and making good on your promises, but with the contacts the players have in the world of football there’s no reason why their business won’t be a success. Football is a closed environment and players and clubs prefer to deal with people who share their background. Privacy and discretion are very important commodities, whether you’re a top executive or an Old Firm signing, and, as players, that’s something they’ll obviously appreciate.”
It’s a point that’s not lost on Tod. “There are a lot of similarities between players and executives. Both groups pay a premium for privacy and security, and both want good commuting links, good local schools, golf and high-spec modern homes. This is a world we understand and, given our experience, it’s a world we’re more qualified than most to work in.”