BREA - Sustainability and Scottishness is a winning recipe for this restaurant

Bionic caught up with Gillian Ferguson, an award-winning restaurateur whose locally sourced menu offers a taste of Scotland at the gateway to the Highlands.

She’s been running BREA for nine years, but how did she get started? What are her greatest achievements? What does she see as her biggest challenge? And what did she think when he found out she’d won his business insurance free for a year?

Read on to find out all this and more...

How did it feel to win free insurance for a year?

“I was delighted! It’s something that, particularly at a hard time of the year for the business, just gives us a little buffer to help us along.

Gillian is a long-standing Bionic customer who uses us for both business insurance and business energy, and appreciates that she can speak to someone to sort her insurance.

“We obviously like the company and like the customer service, and we stick with you now. I like that I can do most of it online, and you can clarify things at the end by speaking to an individual.

“You know it’s getting done right. I could mess it up if I’m doing it myself, so it’s good that you’ve got that backup of somebody who’s knowledgeable sorting it.”

As local, as sustainable, and as Scottish as possible

As well as being handy for Scotland’s big cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, Stirling is also the gateway to the Highlands - the motorways end at Stirling, and the country opens out into a network of the most scenic, winding roads anywhere in the world – and so a showcase of Scotland was the way to go for Gillian.

“I’ve got a real passion for Scotland as well, so it was having a business that showcases the best of Scotland and Scottish produce. The unique little distilleries from the islands that you don’t get in major supermarkets.”

“Our wine supplier specialises in biodynamic and organic wines from little vineyards. That’s something that’s really important to me as well.

We’ve got organic vodkas, organic gins, and organic beers. That’s something we try to develop as much as possible, but we do have other offerings because costs are generally higher with those things.”

Sustainable and Scottish is the name of the game at BREA. “Our seafood comes from the west coast, and our game comes from literally an hour up the road on the hills. Ice cream is by Milk and Honey, a couple of local guys. We support lots of little breweries and Stirling distillery gin, which is just up the road.”

“We try to support as local and as Scottish as possible.”

Pride in what’s being served is key at BREA. Fine food over fast food.

“I’ve heard of places microwaving chicken breasts from raw. It’s disgusting. Ours is all fresh, which means you might have to wait a little longer – some people have complained that they’ve been waiting for 20 minutes, but we can’t cook a chicken breast from scratch any quicker than you can at home. If you want it done well, you have to wait.

“But most people who come are more like foodies who want that nice experience of it being an enjoyable meal over time – you have your starter, then have a wee rest.”

“I wanted to create a place that I would want to eat in. That’s what I look for – fresh food, Scottish food, and if I can get a glass of organic wine, then that’s an absolute bonus.”

Fine food, family, friends, achievements, and teamwork

Although she pursued a career in finance, Gillian comes from a family of business owners – her parents ran a tea shop where she used to work when she was younger – so it was only a matter of time before Gillian took the plunge and became her own boss.

“I wanted to be my own boss. I now run it with one of my best friends – he's the head chef and we’ve been friends since primary school. He’s really passionate about food and has extremely high standards.

“It’s worked really well with his knowledge and enthusiasm for the food side of things, then me looking after everything else.”

“He’s really strict on his standards. We use 35-day dry-aged beef from a fantastic butcher just near Edinburgh. We’re really strict on everything, from the set-up in the morning, to cleanliness, to the right whisky used on a dessert.

“It’s a lot of work, but you hope you’re making people happy and showcasing Scotland to its best.

“That’s what makes it all worthwhile.”

Starting and running a successful business is an achievement in itself, but what has been Gillian's biggest achievement as a business owner?

“Definitely our awards. We’ve won quite a few, but in 2022, we won the best restaurant in Scotland at The Food Awards – that was awesome. We’d had quite a few beverages before the prize was announced, so it was quite an interesting acceptance speech!

“We’ve got such a lovely team, and the front-of-house team is fantastic with customer service. They really care about the customers and want them to have that great experience.

“All the reviews are fed back to the team, so they’re constantly getting feedback on how people are finding it. If we get just one bad review, they get completely disheartened – so they do strive to do their best at all times, which is amazing.”

“You don’t have success without an amazing team.”

Balancing high standards, rising costs, and reduced customer spending

After hearing about the successes and how to navigate the occasional tricky customer, it was time to find out what Gillian’s biggest challenge is as a business owner.

“Definitely the rising costs. Costs have just gone absolutely insane across the board – from produce right through to the cost of business electricity. It’s horrendous.

“I’d say it’s harder than during COVID, right now.”

“Also, people just don’t have the money to go out for a meal as often as maybe they used to. To try and maintain the high standards we want and not lower the quality of produce that we use is really difficult.”

It’s a problem facing many business owners. A recent report from Parliament’s Business and Trade Committee says many small firms are now under pressure that’s as tough as, or even worse than, during COVID, backing up Gillian’s experience. Something we covered in Issue #125 of The Backbone.

So how does she strike a balance?

“Analysing figures constantly. I think that’s where my background in finance comes in. I love a good spreadsheet.

“I’ve got spreadsheets for everything, and I’m continually looking at costs and ensuring we’re getting the best deal for the produce. Not lowering the standards, but making sure we’re getting the best prices.

Although tourism is seasonal in Stirling, Gillian has 19 staff who are her priority, so it’s not a case of simply hibernating for the winter.

“In summer, we could fill the place five times over. And you always hope that a big summer will help you survive through the winter.

“The winter can be nice for the team to have a bit more chill time. And it gives them a chance to play around with the dishes and different specials and think about the next menu.”

How the dying high street is impacting us all

Small businesses are offered very little support from the government. Take energy as an example – while households have had some protection via the energy price cap, there’s no such protection in place for businesses.

When combined with rising rent and, as outlined above, rising costs across the board and less customer spending power, it can be hard to see how small businesses can survive, let alone thrive.

But the dying high street doesn’t just affect business owners. It impacts us all. And it’s an issue Gillian understandably feels strongly about.

“Loneliness is an epidemic now. Going to the pub can be people’s social life, and if they can no longer afford to do that, it’s going to have a massive impact on their mental and physical health.

“It’s not healthy for people to be isolated. The hospitality industry is the heart of the community. I don’t think the government realises how bad it is and how hard it is, and it’s only when they’ll have lost so many [businesses] that they’ll realise. And then they’re reacting, when they should be planning.”

Teamwork makes the dream work

But let’s finish on something more upbeat – what does Gillian love most about being a business owner?

“Definitely the team! Working with the team and just being able to showcase Scotland and some of the amazing things that it has to offer.”

Is there anything Gillian would change if she were to start her small business journey all over again?

“I’d get my head chef in sooner! We’ve had a lot of chefs, but when he came in, that put us on the path to where we are now - really high-quality, Scottish offerings.”

It’s all about putting the groundwork in and finding the right people for the job.

“Put in the effort beforehand. Getting the right team is the hardest thing. I’ve had different ups and downs over the years, but the team I’ve got now are absolutely fantastic.”

And finally, any advice for someone looking to start a business?

“Be prepared to work a lot harder than you think you will.

“The first few years are tough, and you have to work hard. But get the right team because that’s what makes it night and day between how it runs and how successful it is.

“And it’s about mutual respect. Being your own boss is about not having to deal with not-nice bosses, so I very much care about the team and about them all individually.

“And we do have that mutual respect for each other. I think that’s really important as well.”

For more information, check out the BREA Scottish Restaurant website, or keep up to date with Gillian and the team on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. If you’re ever in or around Stirling, you can sample some of the best Scotland has to offer at 5 Baker Street, Stirling, FK8 1BJ. 

Check out the whole interview with Gillian below or on the Bionic YouTube channel.