Category Archives: Features

Features, News

In a cost of living crisis, how do we future proof our high streets?

By Gregor Boyd

According to research by Retail Economics, the UK is set to face the “sharpest decline in spending” over the Christmas period compared to all other countries sampled.

Now on the road to recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic, the UK is in a new period of uncertainty with a cost-of-living crisis and skyrocketing energy bills, meaning that the public is expected to tighten their purse strings and spend less this year at Christmas. It is reported that sales forecasts are down as many companies are already bracing for the impact of a lacklustre Christmas.

If you take a walk down your average high street, you’ll see the retail casualties of the pandemic. Large retail chains that were once a mainstay now lie empty, yet the possibilities for those derelict retail spaces are still endless.  What used to be a multi-level department store could become a shared hub for several different businesses. A notable example of transforming retail spaces into experience-led spaces is the former BHS in Leith’s Ocean Terminal which is now ‘Transgression Skatepark’. 

One organisation that is setting out a more positive approach to Scotland’s high streets is Scotland’s Towns Partnership. They aim to highlight the potential diversity that can be achieved to showcase each town’s own identity. 

Scotland’s Town Partnership also aims to encourage developing the current infrastructure to allow town centres and local communities to thrive.  On their website, they have several key developmental actions focusing on community-led regeneration, an emphasis on living in town centres, supporting the local economies, maintaining accessible public services, and working with local businesses and residents to revitalize our high streets by bringing them into the 21st century and planning for the future.

Despite the positive approach to future-proofing our high streets. The current financial issues are affecting not just people but also those already struggling high street businesses. Retail owners are continually speaking out about how the uncertainty might put their business in the ground unless things changed. With the UK government offering some help but seemingly not going far enough to mitigate the ongoing troubles, a bigger discussion surrounding the future of retail in town centres and high streets is essential if we are to come out the other end.

Speaking to Leigh Sparks who is the Deputy Principal (Education and Students) and Professor of Retail Studies at Stirling University. He offered his perspective on how the cost-of-living crisis could hamper the development of Scotland’s high streets. Leigh points out that patching up high streets and town centres might momentarily work but as commercial activities continue to disappear from high streets, a bigger fiscal change that challenges vested interests is needed.

More information can be found on Leigh’s blog at Stirlingretail

 

Features, News

UNCUFFED: THE SECRET LIFE OF CLOSETED SINGLE MEN

By Cameron Noble

LGBTQ+ culture is no stranger to cuffing season – a period of time where people metaphorically handcuff themselves to a partner on a short-term basis to accompany each other over the course of winter. Cuffing season, for those who participate, enjoy feelings of comfort, intimacy and warmth to combat the cold and possibly lonely season. On the other hand, cuffing season can also evoke feelings of envy, isolation, and a deep sense of hopelessness, particularly for those who are fascinated with the idea of pairing with another for a couple of months and want to get in on the action, but aren’t lucky to connect with the right person.

For closeted single men, it’s a whole new game. The additional pressure of keeping their sexuality under the radar prevents them from fully embracing cuffing season, even if they do desire a short-term partner. During cuffing season, closeted single men face the winter alone, and don’t reap the benefits of having a short-term partner, but is that really the case?

From Auchterarder and Edinburgh, George (22) and Michael (29) shared their thoughts about cuffing season from a closeted perspective, and how they get by without the need for a partner. Their names have been changed to respect their anonymity.

George identified as bisexual, but has not revealed his sexuality to his friends or family, especially his parent whom he still lives under a roof with. His family believe men can be sexually attractive to men, but draws the line at bisexuality where they feel bisexuality doesn’t truly exist. As a result, he is not comfortable sharing his true sexuality in fear it would damage his relationship with his family. George has not been in a relationship before, but is actively searching for women to swipe right on dating apps such as Tinder. Given he keeps his profile clear of photographs of his face, he also swipes through a selection of men so he can safely see everyone he could potentially date without compromising his secrecy.

“You see other people on social media having a blast in their relationships, so you kind of feel like you’re missing out on something,” George described his feelings about being single, “So far, I’ve had better chats with guys on here [Tinder] compared to girls but nothing really develops since my family believe I’m straight.”

Michael is exclusively attracted to men and is open to his family about his sexuality, but as his friends are homophobic, he only reveals his true sexuality to those who need to know. He has great memories with his friends, and feels that the bond they have built with each other shouldn’t be damaged over his attraction for men over women. Michael had previous experience in a relationship, but recently broke-up after realising juggling his romantic life with his friends was becoming a bit of a struggle. For the time being, he has been enjoying the perks of being single and living life by his rules.

“Going our separate ways was best for both of us,” Michael referred to the break-up with his ex-boyfriend, “Now that I’m single again, I can do things on my terms without having to think about commitments.”

Michael has made the most of his reclaimed freedom of being single by dedicating his daylight hours with friends whenever he isn’t working, and reserving his evenings and nights to fulfil his sexual desires by involving himself on gay-oriented hookup apps such as Grindr. Ontop, whenever he is doing neither of those, he enjoys treating himself by taking himself on a date, whether by dining alone at a restaurant in the heart of Edinburgh, or buying last minute tickets and snacks at a cinema to see the latest films.

“For those who are single, count it as a blessing.” Michael said, “I think there’s a stigma attached to single people, and that’s not true. You can focus on you. Do what makes you happy.”

Given Michael has experienced what it is like to be in a relationship, it may be easier for him to accept that relationships aren’t the only source of comfort, intimacy and warmth during winter, compared to George. However, George is aware these feelings can be obtained elsewhere, primarily from his friends.

“My friends love me, and I guess that matters to me more.” George said, “We’ve got a few things planned for December that we’re looking forward to.”

For the lead up to Christmas, George and his friends are hitting the pubs and clubs for a rowdy night filled with drinks and blasting music. Delving deep into an energetic atmosphere with hundreds of people can spark feelings of excitement and inclusion, plus the thick air dampened by the sweat of dancing crowds will certainly keep him and his friends warm through the winter weather (at least for a little while). Pubs and clubs also provide a space where they can further connect with each other, where they can show their love for each other and create fun, lasting memories to cherish.

For those in the LGBTQ+ community who have successfully handcuffed themselves to a short-term partner, they can have their fun, but the closeted singles will certainly not be left out. Throughout cuffing season, closeted single men don’t necessarily need to rely on finding a temporary relationship to obtain feelings of comfort, intimacy and warmth. Instead, they continue living life by their own rules rather than betting all of their happiness on a romance-roulette. Being in the company of good friends, making and sharing memories together can be just as effective as what short-term relationships bring. No commitments to a relationship also keeps schedules more flexible, making it easier than ever to tick off activities on the bucket list without having to concern oneself over the need to include other people and cater to preferences. And as an added bonus, for those who enjoy regular no-strings-attached hookups with different people, being single grants you the ability to sleep with whoever you like without the guilt of cheating on a romantic partner.

Features, Opinion, Sport

WHY OUR PROSPECTS ARE LEAVING – THE SAD STATE OF SCOTTISH FOOTBALL

By Zak Williamson

There has been an emerging trend in football over the last few years of young Scottish talent being wooed away from playing in the Scottish Premiership to play abroad.

Whenever a new, exciting prospect emerges, it is only a matter of time before they are linked with a move to what many would consider greener pastures.

A prime example would be former Hearts fullback Aaron Hickey, who burst onto the scene in 2019 at just 17 years old, playing 33 games and becoming the youngest-ever player to play in a Scottish Cup Final.

After an outstanding debut season, Hickey was linked with many different clubs throughout the continent, eventually settling on a move to Italian Serie A side Bologna for a relatively low £1.5 million.

This is even after Hickey was linked with a move to Celtic, who reportedly tried to sign the young Scot on ‘5 or 6 different occasions.’

Speaking to the BBC, Hickey stated that his decision was influenced by the opportunity to play against some of the biggest names in Italian football at the time such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala.

The move eventually paid off for the former Hearts man, as he was able to secure a dream £18 million move to Premier League side Brentford back in July.

This blueprint of Italian clubs signing young Scottish talent has continued in recent times with Aberdeen’s Lewis Ferguson and Hibernian’s Josh Doig securing moves to Bologna and Hellas Veronas respectively, costing the Italian sides £3 million each.

While it is undeniable that the Serie A is of a better standard than the Scottish Premiership in its current form, it still feels as if Scotland is getting the worse end of the deal.

Firstly, the prices commanded by the players are far too low. While the Scottish Premiership may not be among the richest in Europe, it still has players of considerable talent playing in it.

When Aaron Hickey’s fee to Brentford is compared to what Hearts received for him, there is a massive difference, almost 10 times less money than Bologna received for the player.

The current state of the Scottish game has led to clubs releasing their hottest young prospects for a fraction of what they are worth, accepting what is essentially pittance for players who could develop into real, world-class talent.

When questioned by Sky Sports about Serie A clubs’ sudden interest in Scottish talent, former  Bologna scout Francesco Strozzi stated his belief that “the Scottish Premiership is an incredibly, incredibly underrated league,” and “it doesn’t have quite enough attention in the eyes of many scouting departments around the world.”

This shows that there are those who recognise how much of a goldmine the Scottish Premiership can be when it comes to young talent. The problem is that clubs from the Serie A are essentially taking advantage of the poor financial state of the Scottish League to turn over a profit.

Teams in Scotland will often be incentivised to accept offers far below the value of their key players due to the lack of financial backing received from the league itself, among other things such as poor tv deals.

One high-profile example of this would be the ‘cinch’ deal, which saw online car retailer company cinch become the main sponsor of the Scottish Premiership for 5 years back in 2021. The deal saw £1.6 million in sponsorship money shared between all 42 clubs in Scotland’s top 4 leagues.

This amounted to just £38,000 for each club. While it may be useful money to teams in the smaller leagues, this is an absurdly small amount for teams in the top flight and shows why teams jump at any chance to make money from player sales, even if the sale is way below the player’s worth.

While the cinch deal has recently been renegotiated to allow more finances to go to clubs in Scotland, it is still unlikely to make a huge difference when it comes to clubs in the top flight.

When looking at Scottish football today, it is hard to imagine that Celtic won the European Cup in 1967 with every player born within 30 miles of Celtic Park. Or that Rangers and Aberdeen won European trophies of their own in the 70s and 80s.

Although times have changed and the game has moved on, there appears to be a lack of belief in young prospects in Scotland, whether it be at the club level or international. Take former Rangers full-back, Nathan Patterson, as an example.

When playing for the Ibrox side as backup to James Tavernier, he was playing regular first-team football and even scoring a goal in the Europa League. Yet it took him a £12 million move to Premier League side Everton for him to become a regular starter for Steve Clarke’s Scotland.

A similar situation would be Liverpool’s Calvin Ramsey, who made his first start in the Champions League before receiving a call-up to the National Team.

Perhaps this puts things into perspective for why so many young players are looking to play outside of Scotland. It is the only way to receive the attention and recognition they deserve.

If top-level sides in England and Italy can see the worth of these players, then why can’t our national set-up do the same?

Teams in other countries are taking a chance on Scottish players who may have been thought of as ‘not good enough’ or ‘too young’ and giving them a chance to break into the first team.

They see the value in Scottish football, so perhaps the teams and governing bodies within Scottish should start doing the same and stop selling ourselves short at every opportunity.