PBN has exclusive use of Opus One Restaurant at the New County Hotel, Perth for our lunch on 29 February when our guest speaker is Sandra Ralston.  Sandra’s background is in organising international conferences in Environmental Management from the University of Aberdeen, working in many countries across the world but since 1997, she has been the Administrator at Perth Festival of the Arts and in that time has seen the Festival grow from its classical and opera roots into an event embracing all art forms including ballet, rock, jazz, folk, theatre, comedy and art exhbitions with international stars.

Sandra also runs her own Event Management company based in Kinross and is the Administrator for the Kinross-shire Partnership, an enterprise company promoting business and tourism in Kinross-shire.

Perth Festival of the Arts takes place from 17 – 27 May with tickets going on sale on 26 March.

Guests are also welcome to attend a maximum of two meetings prior to joining PBN so if you know of anyone who may like to find out more about our networking organisation, please invite them along to this meeting.

Please choose from the following options and advise when booking:

Ballotine of Chicken
Fondante Potato, Carrot Purée, Savoy Cabbage

Baked Herb Crusted Coley Fillet
Herb Risotto, Fennel & Dill Salad

Rooster Potato Gnocchi
Sautéed Wild Mushroom, Wilted Spinach, Toasted Pine Nuts

Followed by tea/coffee.

If anyone has specific dietary requirements, please let me know when booking for this meeting.

To reserve a place, please email info@perthshirebusinesswomen.co.uk or contact Sandra White on 01350 727381 no later than 5pm on MONDAY, 27 FEBRUARY.

Welcome to the first meeting of PBN for 2012 when we’re delighted to have Charlie Taylor, one of the UK’s top stylists, as our guest speaker.  Charlie was the third woman in her own right to be admitted into the British Hairdressing Hall of Fame in 2006 in recognition of winning the title Scottish Hairdresser of the Year three times.  She has worked as a hairdresser for 35 years and opened her first salon in Perth in 1987 which soon became an SQA self-assessment centre where all training is carried out in-house.  This allowed Charlie Taylor Hair, Health & Beauty to become established as one of the best training providers in Scotland.  The salon group then expanded into Dundee in 1998 and later opened further salons in St. Andrews and Bridge of Allan.

At our January meeting, Charlie will select one lucky lady from the audience to have a mini makeover which will include a re-style and makeup.  Whilst this is taking place, Charlie will give you an insight into her life in the hair and beauty industry and what it’s really like to be travelling all over the world hosting shows.  This is a great opportunity for the audience to interact, ask questions and really find out how this entrepreneur keeps her feet firmly on the ground.

Guests are also welcome to attend a maximum of two meetings prior to joining PBN so if you know of anyone interested in the organisation, please invite them along to the monthly meetings.

For dinner, please choose a starter and main course from the following options and advise when booking:

Starters

Cream of Mushroom and Tarragon Soup served with a Warm Crusty Roll and Butter

Trio of Melon with a Mango Coulis

Farmhouse Terrine served with Tomato Chutney and Oatcakes

Main Courses

Breast of Chicken filled with Haggis served with Home Prepared Gravy

Fillet of Salmon with a Dill and Lemon Cream Sauce

Wild Mushroom Risotto with a Sun Dried Tomato Dressing

All main courses served with Seasonable Vegetables and Fondant Potatoes

Tea or Fresh Brewed Coffee and Mint Chocolates

If anyone has specific dietary requirements, please let me know when booking for this meeting.

Our thanks also to the Mercure hotel who has kindly agreed to sponsor our January meeting enabling PBN to be able to split the income from this meeting with our charity PUSH.

To reserve a place, please email info@perthshirebusinesswomen.co.uk or contact Sandra White on 01350 727381 no later than 5pm on MONDAY, 23 JANUARY

Wednesday, 7 December, Perth Theatre, High Street, Perth, 12.30pm

Cost £16 (PBN Members); £18 (Non-Members) for two course lunch incl tea/coffee

PBN’s Christmas Lunch will take place at Perth Theatre on Wednesday, 7 December at 12.30pm.  There will be an update by Louisa Jacobs, PBN Committee Member and Business Development Manager for Perth Theatre & Horsecross, on the redevelopment of the Theatre.

The theatre will be in the final preparations for this year’s pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, which opens on Friday, 9 December and runs until 7 January 2012 so we’re really excited that we’re also being given a “Behind the Scenes” tour to see what’s going on before the curtain rises on Perth Theatre’s traditional panto season.

Many thanks also to Perth Theatre for the following offer on the panto available only to PBN members:

•        Book 10 tickets and get 1 free – this can be any combination of adult and children tickets, the cheapest ticket is free (any date between Friday, 9 December and Saturday, 7 January.

Or

•        Buy one adult ticket and get one child ticket free (Monday, 2 January – Saturday, 7 January only).

If you wish to take advantage of the above offer, please do so by emailing Louisa Jacobs, PBN Secretary, at ljacobs@horsecross.co.uk

With Alex Cairncross at Methven Castle

Wednesday, 30 November 2011, 6.30pm – 7.45pm

Alex is hosting a Ladies’ Sparkling Evening at Methven Castle providing PBN with the opportunity to view a new range of diamond jewellery for Christmas as well as her range of silver gifts, jewellery and pearls.  She has teamed up with McEwens of Perth, The Highland Chocolatier and Whisper Lingerie to give us all we need for a Christmas to remember!  Open to her clients, business associates and friends, ladies can browse her range, do some Christmas shopping and create a “wish list” for partners who attend the following evening.  We will enjoy a glass of bubbly while we shop before going on for supper at Chatni in Methven where a two course Indian buffet will be served at 8pm.

Please also invite your partners to join Alex on Thursday, 1 December for her Gent’s Shopping Evening between 5.30pm and 8pm.  With your wish list in hand, a glass of Santa’s Swallie from Inveralmond Brewery in the other, friendly company and a lingerie model providing the eye candy, Christmas shopping will never have been easier!

Methven Castle is located between Almondbank and Methven on the Crieff Road, approximately 3 miles from Dobbies and just before the double bends.  White painted stones mark the entrance on the right-hand side.  Parking is available but limited so PBN members are encouraged to travel together if possible.

Alex Cairncross, Silver Gifts

Tel: 01738 842844; Email: alex@alexcairncross.co.uk

www.alexcairncross.co.uk

www.truthcharmjewellery.com

www.man-silver.com

PBN’s October meeting starts earlier at 11.30am but will still finish at 2pm giving members time for extended networking so join us for whatever time you can manage.  Make sure, however, you’re there for a sandwich lunch with tea/coffee which will be served at 12.30pm.  PBN will have a private room for our event and we’ll also have one or two members “Taking the Floor” spot to tell us the latest news about their businesses.

Guests are also very welcome to attend and if members know of anyone already in business or just starting out, please invite them along.  To book October’s lunch, email info@perthshirebusinesswomen.co.uk.

Ruth McKay will be the guest speaker at this month’s PBN meeting at The Royal George Hotel, Perth on Wednesday, 28 September.

Ruth has worked in both private and public sectors before launching her first business, Unique Marketing Solutions, in 2005.  She went on to star in Channel 4 documentary ‘Tricky Business’, a programme that showcased Ruth as a young entrepreneur setting out in business and documented her winning her first contract, running events and developing her business.

Her passion to help small and sole trader companies realise the benefits of effective marketing and sales led her to establish UNIQ, Scotland’s first training company specialising in training solutions tailored to small businesses.  It empowers business owners to measure their sales, marketing and operations through a pioneering online training platform and tailored programmes that are producing extraordinary results in some of the UK’s most aspiring small companies.

In 2010, she set up UNIQ, The Academy for Entrepreneurs with Ben Cartwright, a former senior manager at BSkyB after she experienced a frustrating lack of relevant practical support from enterprise agencies.  Ruth has also forged a reputation as an expert in personal branding and social influence marketing and is regularly invited to speak by a variety of business groups on marketing for SME companies, social media and branding.

Her PBN presentation entitled “Six Steps to Great Marketing and Great Sex” will be a fascinating and humorous insight into how we do/don’t, should/shouldn’t market our business.

Members are very welcome to bring guests to PBN meetings so if you know of anyone already in business or just starting out who may benefit from being part of our networking organisation, please invite them to come along.

For supper, please choose from the following options:

MAIN COURSE:

Roast Breast of Chicken with White Wine & Chive Sauce
Fresh Fillet of Sea Bass with Tomato & Rosemary Sauce
Roast Vegetable Tartlet topped with Goat’s Cheese
(served with Vegetables & Potatoes)
************
DESSERT:
Crème Brulée
Lemon Cheesecake
followed by Tea/Coffee with Chef’s Vanilla Tablet

If anyone has specific dietary requirements, please let me know when booking for this meeting.

To reserve a place, please email info@perthshirebusinesswomen.co.uk or contact Sandra White on 01350 727381 no later than 5pm on MONDAY, 26 SEPTEMBER.

Any cancellations should also be advised by above deadline, otherwise we regret that we shall have to invoice you for the meeting fee.

This stylish evening will show you how to take the catwalk to your wardrobe. As personal stylists with years of experience in helping people to look and more importantly feel fantastic, Adele & Marlene believe that you don’t have to be 6ft tall and size zero to feel catwalk confident this Autumn/Winter.

Practical advice you can use every day with top stylist tips on how to make this season’s key trends work for you, your lifestyle and your budget.

To book the meeting click here

Tasting was an essential part of the evening so we started off with different flavours of malted barley and of course ended the process with the beers themselves served by Mine Host Fergus. Favourites on the night were “Sunburst”, a Pilsner-style lager with “Lia Fail”, a dark, robust, full bodied beer with a deep malty taste, smooth texture and hoppy aroma, in second place.  As we all had our “carry-out” orders too, those left at home were not forgotten!
Our thanks to Fergus for being such a wonderful host and to Sandra Kinloch for providing a superb buffet. Apologies, also, to Fergus for the impressive number of empty glasses left behind but that just goes to show how good Inveralmond’s beers and lager really are!