30-SECOND CV
The number of new businesses in the UK has increased every year since 2008, according to Companies House data, with the financial crisis proving an opportunity for many ventures to take a chance.
That was the case for Edinburgh’s Cathcart Associates, which was set up in 2009 at what joint managing director Gordon Kaye says was the high point of the fallout from the financial crisis. He was work- ing as a manager at a global recruitment firm, where he and colleague Sam Wason “pretty much” ran the Scottish division of the company themselves.
Kaye then put forward the idea of branching out to Wason, now joint managing director, and the former tells how, while some people thought starting up then was a brave move, he saw it more as a “logical” one.
He says: “The thought process was, ‘if we can make it work at that point and if we can make it profitable when the chips are down, then hopefully that’ll put us in a strong position to build the business when the market improves’.” Growth was organic and steady, funded by their own savings rather than a business loan or angel investment.
The It-focused company’s take-off came in parallel with the Scottish technology scene flourishing. Kaye adds that in their favour was the fact that the tech economy was making good progress relative to its mainstream counterpart, and was somewhat sheltered from broader economic turbulence.
Additionally, the firm wasn’t covering, say, finance recruitment, which would have faced far greater hurdles, he believes, also pointing out that IT is an area where businesses always need to maintain investment regardless of broader conditions.
Cathcart now has about 25 staff globally, encompass- ● Born: 1976, Edinburgh ● Education: Honours degree in information management ● First job: Video rental ● Ambition while at school: A pilot, but I remember from a very young age saying I always wanted a job where I could wear an amazing suit (still waiting for that) ● What car do you drive: I change cars weekly, they are a big hobby. Current project ing its operations in Edinburgh city centre, an office in Manchester that opened in 2015 to harness what it saw as the major growth of the digital industry in car is a 07 Clio R27 F1 ● Favourite mode of transport: First class on the train is the only way to party ● Music: Modern, commercial dance music. Or 80s electronic pop ● Kindle or book: Kindle, as I can play games on it but I read car magazines religiously, so probably book ● Can’t live without: Football. Coaching, playing and watching in large quantities ● What inspires you: Taking people who aren’t good at something but want to be and watching them get better the north of England and an outpost in Bangkok opened the same year. The last comes as the firm seeks to leverage Thailand’s combination of a nascent