CEiS were delighted to welcome John Swinney MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth, to our new social enterprise – Catalyst Catering – which was launched today. Mr Swinney met with our new catering team and heard about the plans for this new venture.
Catalyst Catering is a trading subsidiary of CEiS Ayrshire. The business opened yesterday, in Marathon House, Dundonald servicing the business park occupants; with future expansion in late July to a second site in Kilmarnock and a contract catering operation. Catalyst Catering will
offer meaningful employment and training opportunities for young people aged 18-24 within the café from food preparation, sales,
budgeting, customer service and front of house experience to providing a contract catering service. Clients will come from the employability programmes managed by CEiS Ayrshire on behalf of North Ayrshire Council and the Community Planning Partnership.
Catalyst Catering has taken over the operation of an existing business on the Dundonald site and was supported in this acquisition by the Social
Firms Scotland programme: Acquiring Business 4 Good.
Initially the intention is to service Marathon House and the surrounding areas. As the model develops, the venture will explore the potential to expand its external catering operations and customer base to new areas in a small goals/steps approach. Albeit designed to enhance the individual work ethic, social interaction, technical skills, entrepreneurial ability and personal planning and development, this is a venture aimed at income generation and it will function as a sustainable social enterprise.
We would like to thank West Coast Capital, Matthew Algie, Acquiring Business 4Good and North Ayrshire Council for their support.