Sir Tom Hunter visited Arnold Clark head office.
Sir Tom Hunter visited Arnold Clark head office.
Arnold Clark employees have raised £140,000 for a range of charities with their participation in Kiltwalk events throughout 2018. It was a record-breaking year for the Kiltwalk, with more than 20,000 walkers taking part across all events for the first time. Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh played host to these mass-participation walks, with a range of distances available to suit every walking ability, from the gentle stroll of The Wee Wander to the marathon challenge of The Mighty Stride.
In all, 95 Arnold Clark employees took part in events throughout Scotland covering an incredible 2,004 miles, each fundraising for a cause that meant something to them with 54 different charities benefitting. And as part of their employee match-funding initiative, Arnold Clark matched every penny raised by employees up to £1,000, contributing £40,000 towards the total. On top of that, thanks to The Hunter Foundation, every walker received a 40% funding boost ensuring all funds raised went towards good causes.
To find out about Arnold Clark’s fundraising success, representatives from the Kiltwalk, including Sir Tom Hunter and Kiltwalk CEO Paul Cooney, visited the Arnold Clark head office in Hillington to meet with Chief Executive and Group Managing Director Eddie Hawthorne, as well as some of the staff who took part.
Arnold Clark Project Manager Mark Stewart completed all four Kiltwalks for the second year running. In 2018 alone, he raised an incredible £5,000 for West Lothian-based charity Signpost.
Mark said: ‘I am amazed and humbled by the walkers that I meet along the way and the great causes they are fundraising for. The Dundee Kiltwalk was my favourite, with some great scenery along the way, despite the rain this year.’
Sir Tom Hunter added: ‘The highlight of the Kiltwalk in 2018 for me was that we had more than 20,000 walkers. We’ve just been totting up all the statistics and there were over 1,200 charities helped and Kiltwalkers raised £3.6 million. The Hunter Foundation topped that up with £1.4 million so more than £5 million pounds was raised this year.’
‘We couldn’t do it without Arnold Clark, from all the staff members who do the walk to all the help we get and the car that we give away at each event. It’s really nice to have this family business alongside us. In 2019, we’re going to get more walkers, we’re going to try and help more charities and have a bit of fun as well.’
Eddie Hawthorne said: ‘I’m really proud of the Arnold Clark employees who walked this year but I think they should be proud of themselves because they’re walking for their own charities for their own reasons, and making sure that every penny they raise makes a difference.’
The Kiltwalk will return in 2019, with the first event kicking off in Glasgow on 28th April, followed by walks in Aberdeen on 2nd June 2019 and Dundee on 18th August, with the final Kiltwalk of the year taking place in Edinburgh on 15th September. Arnold Clark will remain a platinum sponsor and will continue to their car giveaways at each event. There will be an even better chance to win a brand-new Kia Rio in 2019 as every event that gets more than 5,000 participants will be given an additional prize car.
