THE manager of Dunoon Presents BID is Colin Moulson. He said it is vital the work of the BID is clearly visible to both business and community.
People need to see it in action, or they will perceive inaction.
I think it is important to recognise that all BIDs are different and that no two are the same in the way their output is produced. It is also relatively unusual for re-ballots to fail and, indeed, there are more recent examples of successful ballots, including Falkirk (5th term), Lerwick and St Andrews.
The BID model still appears to be seen as the ideal partnership and resource for business communities to achieve objectives that may not otherwise be possible or affordable, and the Dunoon Presents team firmly believe the BID structure is key to the town’s future, as do many other business communities across Scotland and the UK.
We have to work with what we have available at our disposal in every respect, and this means relationships with wider stakeholders such as Argyll and Bute Council and community councils are also vital going forward.
In the case of Dunoon, a mission was laid out which was to reposition the town into becoming a modern destination for tourists and visitors with a tangible, enticing and clear proposition.
In this case, it has been to a large extent to harness the natural resources of the area via an events strategy that is demonstrably working to the town’s benefit, which is now well into its third five-year term.
The stakeholders are key to everything the BID does and help guide the direction of the output in any given term, and it is also key that the BID is flexible and adaptable when the circumstances require it.
For example, during exceptional circumstances in the Covid pandemic, the BID had to pivot and operate in a completely different way. The BID also had to step in via close collaboration with the local lights group and, in doing so, secured the long-term future of the town’s Christmas lights.
A brand-new event was also introduced in 2026 and proved to be a big success: The Taste Dunoon Food and Drink Festival is estimated to have brought £414,557 direct economic impact into the local economy. This was calculated using competition entry form data and conservative estimates of local spend using the event impact calculator referenced by VisitScotland.
The town was full and the atmosphere was second to none. Visitors, locals, stallholders, shops, restaurants, cafes and accommodation providers all had a great weekend.
We believe this new event has a long-term place in the town events calendar. The new Dunoon West Bay parkrun is another long-term event that is now a weekly occurrence and is already bringing tourists from across the UK. This was part-funded by Dunoon Presents.
It is also vitally important that the benefits the BID brings to the town are unmissable to both the business and local communities. This visibility brings a confidence that the project is delivering real, tangible growth for the town and wider area.
In this third term, the BID focus has also developed more in that we are now actively working on some non-event projects in addition to the core events, for example, the new digital notice board was identified as a priority for the town and that has now been delivered and will prove to be a useful asset going forward, thus leaving a legacy.
Work to develop a permanent cycling pump track facility is currently also ongoing.
