People: Company tie is the Merseyside derby

MIKE Welch, the Liverpudlian who runs Scottish tyre firm Blackcircles, may be in for some lively company meetings now that fellow Scouser Sir Terry Leahy has joined.

The Raeburn has become focus of restoration efforts since 2011. Picture: Sandy Young

Welch is a big fan of Liverpool Football Club, while former Tesco chief Leahy supports Everton, the club at the other side of Stanley Park.

Liverpool’s recent good run which has seen them challenging at the top of the English Premier League has had a profound impact on Welch’s diary. He has been making return trips from Edinburgh to Merseyside for home matches, even arranging to meet business associates in the city.

The zen pugilist

Burness Paull chairman Philip Rodney is cited for his “interpersonal skills” in the Legal 500 rankings, so it may come as a surprise to hear he has taken up sparring as part of his fitness regime.

But colleagues need not worry about the prospects of a punch-up, as Rodney insists he enters a “zen-like” state of calm after a bout or two with his personal trainer.

Professorial insight

Fresh from overseeing the £660 million purchase of Scottish Widows Investment Partnership, Hugh Little – head of acquisitions at Aberdeen Asset Management – has taken on the mantle of visiting professor at the city’s Robert Gordon University.

During his initial three-year tenure, he will offer an insight into his working world to postgraduate and masters students at the university’s business school.

Raeburn resurrected

A PARTY took place last week to mark the rebirth of one of Edinburgh’s derelict historic buildings.

The former Raeburn House hotel in Stockbridge, dating back to 1832, was closed in 2007 and has been restored by Archie Maclean, owner of Border Motor Group.

His son Ross is director of the hotel. The Macleans, who bought the building for £1.3m in 2011, hope to create a food mecca in an area which includes Tom Kitchin’s Scran & Scallie.