Running a business. Backed by a brand.
Walk into the Edinburgh Agency of NFU Mutual, and you won’t just find insurance advice. You’ll find business owners supporting business owners – listening, advising, and getting stuck into the day-to-day challenges their clients face. Across Scotland, these agencies are proving that when service is personal and rooted in real-world experience, it resonates.
Doug Schreiber didn’t step into the world of self-employment by accident. After joining NFU Mutual’s agency network in 2015 and gaining experience across the business, he became a self-employed Agent in 2020 – and hasn’t looked back.
“The attraction for me was simple,” Doug says. “If I worked harder, I could earn more. I could make the decisions, build the team, shape the direction. That’s not something you get in most opportunities.”
Doug now co-leads the business within the Edinburgh Agency of NFU Mutual, working alongside fellow Agent Scott Carruthers. He specialises in commercial insurance for sectors like property, construction, motor trade and hospitality, and still brings his farming insurance experience to the table.
This isn’t a franchise or a salaried management role. It’s a self-employed business opportunity – backed by a national brand but independently operated.
“We decide who to recruit. We decide who to target. We set the tone,” Doug explains. “NFU Mutual gives us the training, the brand, the tools – but how we use them is up to us.”
That autonomy is matched by the scale of the challenge. “You don’t step into a ready-made business and wait for it to run itself,” Doug says. “You need to be ready to create your own momentum, bring in new opportunities, and help the agency grow.”
It’s a model that works best for those with real commercial experience – people who understand what it means to generate business, build relationships and lead from the front.
“It’s not for passengers,” Doug says. “But if you’ve got drive, this could be the most rewarding thing you’ve ever done.”
And it’s not done alone. Doug highlights the brand support, marketing assets, training and peer network available through the NFU Mutual Agency Network.
“You’re running your own business – but you’re not out on a limb. There’s a whole support structure there if you want it.”
In between running a growing agency, Doug finds time for touch rugby and anything outdoors. That balance – between work, reward and lifestyle – is something he values deeply. And it’s something the Agent model has made possible.
Learn how NFU Mutual supports its Agents
For a confidential enquiry into a self-employed Agent role within the NFU Mutual Agency Network, please contact Stephan Papantoniou on 07890 395430 or Stephan_Papantoniou@nfumutual.co.uk
Alternatively, you can apply for our current opportunities in Scotland via the website HERE
