Arthur is Chairman of The Food Trust of Scotland, a Fellow of The Royal Society For The Arts, and an Honorary Life Fellow of the Institute of Direct Marketing. Since 2003, he has been Chairman of The New Lanark Trust, overseeing the restoration and development of one of Scotland’s most important tourist attractions. This industrial village of the 18th and early 19thC has been a UNESCO ”World Heritage Site” since 2001.
Married to Susan in 1971, they set up Scotland Direct Ltd in March 1973, which grew to become Scotland’s largest mail order business, with subsidiaries such as “The Scottish Gourmet” , “The Whisky Connoisseur”, and “The Thimble Guild”
Arthur is a winner of multiple British and International Marketing Awards, and has lectured throughout the world. He was Chairman of The European Direct Marketing Forum in 1999 shortly before ill health forced him to sell his business.
For a number of years in the 1980’s and 90’s he chaired the CEPD (Committee for employment of people with disabilities) in Lanarkshire and East Glasgow. He ironically found himself permanently wheelchair-bound from late 1999. His company had earlier been selected for a “Fit for Work” award, as one of the top 100 in the UK for its policy of employment of disabled people. Today he is President of the Scottish Wheelchair Curling Association.
Arthur was an advisor to the Thatcher & Major Governments on SME Development [10 years]. He has recently presented his paper, The Disablist Society, for consideration at Scottish, UK and European Parliamentary level, to raise awareness of major issues facing the disabled.
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