It will be the first agency appointment for the NESEF, which formed a year ago to promote tourism and inward investment in Aberdeenshire.
Backed by Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeenshire County Council and Scottish Enterprise Grampian, the body is charged with encouraging businesses to move into the area as it prepares for the loss of jobs from its oil industry.
Aberdeen City Council head of publicity Ray Gibson said: ‘Aberdeen is an energy capital with major oil companies such as Shell and BP based here. While the oil industry is still very strong, the oil in the North Sea is declining and over the next decade there will be jobs lost.’ The region is currently home to 450,000 people.
‘There is a perception that North-East Scotland is in the northern reaches of the country and consequently it gets missed off the list,’ said Gibson.
It is not yet known if the NESEF will choose to appoint one or multiple agencies or how long the contract will run.
‘The new regional identity and branding exercise will facilitate increased awareness and understanding of the North-East of Scotland in key markets such as inward investment, leisure and business tourism and international business development,’ said Gibson.
The project is to be funded by Aberdeen City Council, through the Scottish Executive’s City Growth Fund allocation, with funding matched by Scottish Enterprise Grampian.
