SCOTTISH ENTREPRENEUR’S DREAM COMES TRUE AT NEW YORK TARTAN DAY PARADE

Proud Scots from an award-winning glassmaking firm will join New York’s Tartan Day Parade for the first time ever this Saturday.

And they hope New Yorkers will love the four-foot-high inflatable Angel, sporting her bespoke tartan scarf, they will be parading along the streets with them.

The trip is a dream come true for Managing Director Karen Somerville and Customer Service Assistant Helen Kerr from whisky-themed giftware company Angels’ Share Glass.

The firm is well known in Scotland for capturing the spirit of a whisky producers’ legend, known as the Angels’ Share, through the creation of handmade glass angels filled and sealed with whisky in a secret process.

Karen and Helen, along with the inflatable Angel which represents the brand, are travelling to New York from Stirling as part of a trade mission aimed at forging new transatlantic links between Scottish and US businesses.

They’ll spend Tartan Week liaising with US retailers and enjoying all the celebrations culminating in the Parade at which they will celebrate Karen’s 50^th birthday and the ninth anniversary of the firm’s launch.

Karen says: “I’m overwhelmed to be taking part in the Parade this weekend and spending Tartan Week in New York.

“This really is a dream come true and a lifelong ambition for me and my team having watched the parade on TV and read about it in magazines over the years.

“We are so excited to be marching through Manhattan amid thousands of other lovers of all things Scottish and we’re hoping our inflatable Angel will help us stand out from the crowd!

“We’ll also be holding our tartan banner to celebrate the launch of our very own Whisky and Water Tartan and hope New Yorkers will get a kick out of seeing us and give us a wave and a cheer when they spot us coming!

“I remember my mentor telling me when I first started the business to imagine one day taking part in the New York Tartan Day Parade as an established Scottish firm.

“I was never sure something so amazing could happen to me but now here we are heading to New York as proud Scots.

“It’s also my 50^th birthday and the ninth anniversary of the launch of Angels’ Share Glass which will make the Parade experience even more special.”

Karen is hoping for the chance to meet Grand Marshal and fellow Scot Karen Gillan during the Parade and gift her a limited-edition whisky-filled glass angel.

She says: “Both mine and Helen’s families are huge Marvel fans and so meeting Karen and getting the chance to speak to her would be amazing.

“I’m really hoping for the opportunity to gift her one of our angels – that would make the whole experience even more memorable.”

The team from Angels’ Share Glass are among 13 Scottish companies selected to travel to New York on a trade mission run by Forth Valley Chamber of Commerce.

FVCC President Lynn Blaikie said: “Karen is amazing and I’m delighted the Angels’ Share team are part of the delegation.

“They are fantastic Ambassadors for Scotland and the handcrafted whisky-related glass gifts they make are unique and something incredibly special to behold.

“I think they will have enormous success with the US retailers they meet during the mission and be a big hit with New Yorkers as they stride through the streets with their inflatable Angel during the Parade.

“We had an incredible level of interest in the New York mission and I wish Angels Share Glass and the other Scottish firms well as they forge exciting new links this week.” 

During the trade mission entrepreneurs from the companies, which include Ardgowan Distillery and Glasgwegin Scottish Gin, will hold meetings with US retailers and showcase their products.

The Angels’ Share Glass creations, which include handmade glass whisky water droppers and tartan accessories, will be featured in a display at a Scotland House pop-up in the Blackbarn Restaurant on East 26^th Street. 

Karen and Helen will also hold meetings with high-profile US whisky retailers and enjoy all the official Tartan Week celebrations and Scottish-themed festivities including a Ceilidh.

Angels’ Share Glass specialises in crafting whisky-based gifts and launched in 2013 with the creation of handmade glass angels filled with the ‘Angels’ Share’ of whisky.

Last year, the family firm created its own tartan – Whisky and Water by Angels’ Share Glass – which reflects the glassmakers’ story and is used to complement its products.

For more information, visit www.angelsshareglass.com

Notes: Angels’ Share Glass is a family-run business based in Bridge of Allan, near Stirling. The firm was co-founded by Karen Somerville and her father Tom Young MBE – a world-renowned Master Craftsman who has been glassblowing and making lamp-work glassware for 60 years. More information about the company can be found at www.angelsshareglass.com