It was a big year for Spifox – the Scottish Property Industry Festival of Christmas – in more ways that one. The group celebrated its 30th anniversary by hosting Scotland’s largest lunch with a record 1,434 members of the Scottish property scene attending.
The December event raised more than £180,000 for children’s charities, thanks largely to an auction, hosted by ex-Scotland rugby player Andy Nicol, where a 1964 Ford Mustang was sold for £19,000.
The lunch, held in the new extension of the Edinburgh International Conference Centre, was preceded by the annual Christmas Carol Concert at St Cuthbert’s Parish Church, which featured an exclusive performance by renowned violinist Nicola Benedetti.
Ronnie Urquhart, outgoing chairman of Spifox, said: “This year’s Christmas Carol Concert and lunch was our biggest and best yet, a fitting way to celebrate 30 years of working together to support children’s charities in Scotland.”
Spifox was created in 1983 by property and construction professionals to raise funds for Scottish children’s charities. It has raised an astounding £2.5m to date. This year’s benefactors were Children 1st, the Sick Kids Friends Foundation, Richmond’s Hope and Sistema Scotland.
rebecca.kent@estatesgazette.com
