The commercial arm of one of Edinburgh’s oldest institutions is rebranding to meet with the expansion of its venues and consolidate all aspects of the business.

Formed following the 500th anniversary of The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd), the College’s Commercial Enterprises was launched in 2006.

Now Commercial Enterprises – which started out as just three people – is rebranding to ‘Surgeons Quarter’ to mark the expansion of the organisation.

When launched it was tasked with making the most of the institution’s impressive buildings, with all the profits being invested back into the College, to train surgeons and surgical trainees who deliver life-changing skills and improve patient outcome to every corner of the world.

The collection of buildings situated around the historic Hill Square will be known as Surgeons Quarter. The rebranding will allow for the area to be a recognised destination and highlight the scale of the venues within it.

Scott Mitchel, Commercial Director, believes the rebranding of the Commercial Enterprises will help increase recognition of the area.

He said: “After a successful first 10 years rebranding was the next logical step.”

“We wanted to create a brand that encompasses all the venues to a single destination area. Each separate building is so unique that it was a difficult task to decide on how to achieve a single theme that highlights the scale of each building. “Branding the whole area Surgeons’ Quarter is the perfect fit.

Closely following the launch of Commercial Enterprises was the transformation of the College residencies into the 77 room Ten Hill Place hotel in 2006. The success of the hotel culminated in an impressive 88 per cent occupancy rate in 2016. The rebrand will be completed by the Summer of 2018 to tie in with the expansion of Ten Hill Place Hotel, which will then have 129 bedrooms and a completely refurbished restaurant and bar.

Each of the settings operated by the Surgeons Quarter team will be recognised with the distinct @Surgeons’ Quarter, tying in the destination brand.

The College is best known for its magnificent Playfair Building, dating back to 1832. Other venues include the King Khalid Building, formerly St Michael’s Church, which has been transformed into an outstanding 158-seated auditorium.

The stunning Prince Phillip building opened in 2015 following the transformation of a former Edinburgh University language school. It was welcomed by Marketing Edinburgh, which promotes the city across the UK and internationally.

The Royal College is one of the most august institutions in Scotland. It provides education and assessment for medical students, surgical trainees and consultants and supports research to advance standards of care for the future. Surgeons trained and assessed through the College take their life-saving and life-changing skills all over the world.

The College’s Commercial Enterprises promotes, sells and manages all commercial activities held within the College Campus, which includes arts and conferencing venue Surgeons’ Hall. All profits support the charitable aims of the College which are education, assessment and advancement in surgery.

An ambitious double appointment of experienced Corporate Sales Managers to our existing Business Development Team is hoped to drive further revenue growth at one of Edinburgh’s most historic venues.

With a combined total of 24 years’ experience in the hospitality industry, Katie Heigh and Elizabeth Squair, join the commercial arm of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd).

In their new roles, Katie and Elizabeth have been tasked with securing new sales opportunities, as well as ensuring sustained corporate demand across RCSEd’s four iconic buildings, as well as the successful Ten Hill Place Hotel, Café 1505, No.10 Restaurant and 10 Wine Bar.

Joining from her previous post as Sales and Marketing Manager at G1 Group, Katie was responsible for creating sales and marketing plans for The Murrayfield House Hotel and Inn on the Mile.

Bringing her wealth of knowledge of the Scottish capital, the hospitality industry and contacts, Katie is looking forward to growing in the team and adding to the work of the charitable organisation.

Katie, who has 15 years experience in the industry, said: “It is a really exciting time to join RCSEd Commercial Enterprises, the company has transformed since its launch little over ten years ago and will provide so many opportunities for me to expand my knowledge and abilities.

“Knowing that the profit generated at my new workplace goes back into training surgeons and advancing the important work of the college is amazing, the future is thrilling and I hope to play a part in helping the business grow in size and strength.”

Recruited from her post as Business Development Executive at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange, Elizabeth, who is originally from Zimbabwe, has key skills across the hospitality and events market and will be putting them to use in her new role.

Elizabeth, said: “The team here are lovely and so supportive, the company is really interesting and I can’t wait to get stuck right in. There is so much growth and development happening right now.

“With my background mainly focusing on events management I’m excited to put it to use and help the company grow and be able to invest even more back into its charitable aims.”

Scott Mitchell, Commercial Director at Surgeon’s Hall, said: “Both Katie and Elizabeth have a wealth of experience working in the industry and bring a diverse and valuable sets of skills to our growing teams. They are an ideal fit and we are delighted to have them working with us.

“Not only do we have our own busy hotel, but demand for our venues through all manner of events is continuing to grow – and in recruiting these two big names we hope to see that growth continue.”

The College is best known for its magnificent Playfair Building, dating back to 1832. Other venues include the King Khalid Building, formerly St Michael’s Church, which has been transformed into an outstanding 158-seated auditorium.

The stunning Prince Phillip building opened in 2015 following the transformation of a former Edinburgh University language school and the modern Quincentenary Conference Centre was created in 2005 to celebrate the institution’s 500th anniversary.

Launched in 2006, the Commercial Enterprises team promotes, sells and manages conferences, corporate events, weddings and other events across the College’s buildings.

It has also helped establish the College as a Festival-Fringe venue and last August hosted seven theatres frequented by 75,000 customers, while also delivering significant food and beverage sales through its partnership with Edinburgh based Heritage Portfolio.

The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh is one of the world’s oldest medical institutions founded in 1505 after receiving a Royal Seal of Cause from King James IV. All proceeds made by Commercial Enterprises support the charitable aims of the College which are education, assessment and advancement in surgery.