Alexandra Borthwick set up madescotland.com the online marketplace where you can buy beautiful, sustainable, Scottish-made gifts at the beginning of 2023 and it is fast becoming a go to for those in the know.
Made Scotland sells a range of gifts from Highland venison charcuterie to cashmere bed socks, from jewellery to botanical beauty products and includes various Edinburgh makers, such as Shibui Tea, dook, Aye Pickled, Mademoiselle Macaron, and Jump Ship Brewing.
After a career in women’s magazines as a journalist Alexandra spent years living abroad where she found it hard to find quality Scottish-made produce to give as gifts to friends and family back home. Being a storyteller Alexandra wanted to bring in the makers’s stories which she finds really interesting.
She said: “When I lived away from Scotland I really struggled with the industry of Scottish gifts. When you searched online it just felt that what they had to offer was so jaded, so clichéd. All I could find were things for a tourist market – the thistle engraved whisky tumblers, that kind of thing.
“When I moved back home six years ago I found a thriving scene of amazing makers but there was nowhere that you could find all of the goods in one place without going out to markets and fairs. I also found some really amazing really beautiful brands in some out of the way shop for example. There are small businesses doing really interesting things.
“I found so much produce but it always felt like a chance discovery. That was the beginning and I sat on the idea for a while, but then I couldn’t let it go, and there is nobody else doing it.
“Made Scotland is a dream for busy people who can find a range of beautiful gifts in just a few clicks, and who don’t have time to do the last minute dash to the nearest Tesco or John Lewis. And especially at Christmas – my dream is that I am wandering around a twinkly Christmas market with a mulled wine in my hand, browsing and buying some lovely gifts. The reality of life is nothing like that so I have pulled brands together which are a bit more sustainable and special. I choose the things which go on the site. All the products are made in Scotland.”
More than 30 brands have been curated on the website from homewares to beauty, knitwear, accessories, jewellery, art, food and drink. And the next thing that Alexandra is considering is making bespoke hampers – not those “filled with stuff you will never use” but just ordinary stuff people will like.
Alexandra said: “I spent the first six months building up the makers, the concept and the website. I am going to curate some hampers myself and will have some basic models to see how that goes.
“I guess the content writer side of me has meant that I have a blog on the site too which I use to recommend all kinds of things – like on one of the most recent recommending the seven best Christmas Fairs and Markets in Scotland.” (which you can read here)
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
