Scottish Chambers of Commerce welcomes four of Scotland’s most prominent and successful business people to join its Board of Directors, bringing with them decades worth of experience and expertise from a variety of different sectors of industry.
Tim Allan, Scottish Chambers of Commerce President said: “I am delighted to welcome such dynamic and talented business figures to the Board of Scottish Chambers of Commerce. Poonam, Stuart, Colin and Val have exceptional business acumen, strategic vision and leadership that will enable the Scottish Chambers Network to rise to the challenge of driving the Scottish economy forward.
“The Board will continue to focus on its business growth priorities including, the acceleration of plans to rapidly expand the ability of Scottish businesses to export, tackling the stubborn challenge of skills shortages in key sectors and creating a business-friendly environment for doing business in Scotland.
“Serving leadership roles on the board of a national body like SCC is vitally important, while demanding and rewarding. I am grateful to all our board members for their commitment in supporting business growth in Scotland.”
More about the new SCC Board Directors:
Stuart Cresswell serves in a senior leadership role at Associated British Ports, the UK’s largest port operating company. As Port Manager, Stuart holds full operational and P&L responsibility for all of ABP’s Scottish Ports Operations. During his time at ABP, Stuart has held senior roles in Scotland, North West, and Hull. He served as President of Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce for two years, after serving as Director of Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce for six years. Outside of business, Stuart takes a keen interest in an active lifestyle and has previously served as Captain of the Scottish Sea Angling Team, securing and winning 11 Championship medals.
Poonam Gupta OBE is the Chief Executive Officer of PG Paper Company Ltd. Poonam has successfully grown the company from her family home to a globally-recognised business which operates in 53 countries worldwide, with an impressive turnover of £20m. PG Paper is one of the UK’s fastest growing paper companies, and over 90% of its product is exported to the Indian subcontinent, the Middles East and the Far East. Outside of the business world, Poonam is an avid supporter of several charities including Action for Children Scotland & Elephant Family.
Val Russell joined the Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) in 1999. As CEO of ACCI, Val heads up a team of 18 located at Glasgow Prestwick Airport. ACCI is a national award winning Chamber and is the largest non-city Chamber in Scotland with a diverse membership of over 800 local businesses. Val leads the Ayrshire Chamber’s involvement in schools and in the Ayrshire Work Experience Programme across three local council areas. Her work has steered the Chamber as the lead organisation for “Developing Young Workforce Ayrshire” a Scottish Government employer based Initiative. Val’s team at Ayrshire also picked up the award for Best Performing Team of the Year.
Colin Loveday is a mobile communications entrepreneur with an international blue-chip corporate background including Nestle, Sanyo and Nokia Mobile Phones, and has held senior roles in management, marketing, sales and retail. Colin is the Founder and Chief Executive of two mobile telecommunications companies; Predict Mobile and 4G Scotland. He is a member of the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce Council and is past-President of Dundee & Angus Chamber of Commerce.
