New Herald series examines the business of golf

From famed courses to lesser-known gems – plus all the apparel, equipment, training facilities and golfing entertainment on offer across the country – Around the Greens is a regular weekly snapshot of the thousands of businesses operating in Scotland’s iconic sporting industry.

The series provides the lowdown on the people and places that make up the Home of Golf, with the Old Course at St Andrews sitting at the axis of golfing mecca for players around the world. Worth in excess of £1 billion, the golf industry in Scotland plays a key role in the country’s economy with tourism activities alone generating an estimated £286 million annually.

Along with the bucket list destinations there are more than 550 other courses throughout the country. Each has its own story to tell ranging from Scotland’s oldest golf club at Musselburgh to the newest additions such as Dumbarnie Links in Fife.

More major developments are in the offing and they – along with an expansive existing network of golfing infrastructure – support tour operators, retailers, leisure facilities, hospitality providers and golf professionals throughout the country.

To keep up with all that’s going on in the land that created golf, be sure to check out Around the Greens.

Read Around the Greens here.

Hope boosted of good results for retailers leading up to Christmas

(Image: Newsquest)

Footfall in Scottish shops increased last month, new figures show, boosting hopes of good results for retailers over the traditional “golden quarter” leading up to Christmas.

The latest Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC)-Sensormatic data shows footfall rose 0.8% year on year in October, better than the UK average decrease of 1.1%.

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Oil giant Shell calls for ‘certainty’ in wake of Budget

(Image: Stuart Conway)

Shell’s finance chief has called “certainty” on UK Government oil and gas policy as the shockwaves continued to reverberate from Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ radical Budget on Wednesday.

Sinead Gorman was responding to the announcement from Ms Reeves that the energy profits levy, known more commonly as the windfall tax, will increase to 38% from 35%, though the 100% first-year capital allowance for investment remains in place.

Read the full story here.