Game & Country supplies the full range of tools, equipment and clothing needed by gamekeepers in their day to day work. The business has gone from strength to strength and now employs eleven people.

Managing director Richard McGill said:

“I took over the business in 2000, with a great deal of support from Martin Edgar who has proved to be an invaluable mentor. We had a turnover of about £250,000 at that point and have grown the business to a turnover of about £3.5m today.

“We have a retail shop in Selkirk as well as the mail order business and have been fortunate enough to be awarded a second consecutive Royal Warrant as a supplier of gamekeeping prerequisites to Her Majesty the Queen.

“I have seven full-time and four part-time employees, the majority of whom have been gamekeepers themselves. The aspect of the business that gives me the most pride is the fact that so many of our employees stay with us for years and sometimes decades – it’s a good testament to the working environment.

“Sporting shooting sustains thousands of jobs in the UK and in many areas the country sports sector underpins the rural economy.

“Gamekeepers provide a valuable service, not only looking after rare moorland but also upholding tradition and often they are a pillar of the community, helping in a variety of emergency situations such as extinguishing wildfires and helping people who are stuck in snowdrifts.

“I hope that politicians in Scotland will listen to rural communities and understand that the jobs provided by sporting shooting are irreplaceable.”