2018 Scottish Enterprise Awards

30 SME NEWS / 2018 Scottish Enterprise Awards , Invisible Cities is a social enterprise operating across Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester. As part of our overview of the Scottish Enterprise Awards and a selection of the winners of this prestigious programme we invited Founder Zakia Moulaoui to tell us more about this unique organisation and the vital work it undertakes. Best Specialist Walking Tour Guide Provider 2018 & Award for Excellence in Poverty Alleviation 2018 Established in 2016 Invisible Cities trains people who have been affected by homelessness to become walking tour guides of their own city and offers these alternative tours to tourists and locals alike. Zakia talks us through the services the organisation offers and how it works to combine education with support to those who need it. “Here at Invisible Cities, each of our tours is unique and based on themes our guides are passionate about. In Edinburgh we run regular tours on crimes and punishment, powerful women or Leith, as these are the areas where our team have expertise. We do not believe in labels or stereotypes and want to create opportunities for everyone, no matter where they come from or where they live. We organise high quality training based on self-confidence, customer service and first aid. We also partner with blue badge guides, so they can provide 1-to-1 mentoring.” It is this focus on supporting their guides that has led the organisation to the success it enjoys today, as Zakia highlights. “All our tours are personal, local and social. We focus on letting our guides shine through and take their customers on a journey with them. The most common review we get is ‘It is like going on a tour with a friend’. We also always showcase other social enterprises and charities and explain what work they do in the cities we are in. We are proud to say we have only received 5-star reviews on trip advisor, which is all thanks to our guides, of whom we are incredibly proud.” As part of its focus on supporting its guides and the wider displaced community, Invisible Cities also offers a range of social support services, which are central to its mission, as Zakia explains. “Fundamentally, our aim is to break to negative stigma that still exists around homelessness and showcase that our guides have countless skills to offer. We also focus 100% of our efforts and profit into developing our guides further and either organise more Invisible Cities SCO18021