Business Breakfast | The Story Behind the Story

Discover how co-production and creativity can amplify voices, build trust and create more authentic, impactful stories.
About this Event

What changes when we stop telling stories about people and start creating stories with them?

Join us at Edinburgh Remakery for our monthly Business Breakfast, where businesses and organisations come together for meaningful conversations, fresh ideas, and practical insights, all over coffee and pastries in a relaxed, welcoming space.

Spotlight Session

We are delighted to welcome Darren Osborne, Founding Director and Co-Founder of Braw Talent CIC, a creative studio working with young people and communities to create films, animations and other creative projects.

With a background in filmmaking, graphic design and education, Darren has spent years exploring how creative practice can engage people, build confidence and create work that genuinely reflects their experiences while amplifying voices that are often unheard.

In this session, The Story Behind the Story – Co-production, Creativity and Giving People a Voice, Darren will explore what happens when we move beyond simply telling stories about people and instead create stories with them.

Drawing on Braw Talent’s work with young people and communities, including projects exploring violence, identity, prevention and lived experience, Darren will share:

• How to find the story behind the statistics – a simple way for organisations to move from numbers and outputs to stories people can genuinely connect with.
• What makes an impact story compelling? – practical ingredients that businesses and charities can use when developing their own stories.
• Storytelling with, not about, people – practical guidance around authenticity, lived experience, consent and avoiding tokenistic storytelling.
• Turning good work into good content – how one impact story could be adapted into a video, social post, case study, funding application or partnership story without needing huge budgets or resources.
• Common storytelling mistakes – examples of what organisations often get wrong and simple ways to improve.

This isn’t a session about having all the answers. It is an exploration of what Darren has learned from making creative work with, rather than for, people – and what that approach can teach us about storytelling, engagement and impact.

You’ll leave with practical ideas for thinking differently about whose voices are included in your work, how much influence you give them, and what can happen when you make space for people to tell their own stories.

What to Expect
1) Networking & Connections

Meet like-minded businesses, explore collaborations, and build meaningful relationships in an informal setting.

2) SIXTY SECONDS | OVER TO YOU!

Take the stage for 60 seconds to introduce yourself and your business – a brilliant way to connect, share ideas, and spark opportunities.

3) BUSINESS BANTER

After the spotlight session, grab another coffee and continue the conversations, because great connections don’t happen in a rush.

4) TECH DONATIONS

Have unused or old personal tech? Bring it along and drop it into our Tech Donation Box. We will refurbish what we can, support people facing digital exclusion, and responsibly recycle the rest.

Every Pound Makes a Difference

This is not just networking. Every ticket helps us continue our mission to reduce waste and tackle digital exclusion. From gifting refurbished devices to those in need to running free Repair Cafés, your support creates real, lasting impact.

Come along for a thought-provoking conversation about creativity, participation and what can happen when we make space for people to tell their own stories.

Book your place now and join us on Thursday 24 September, 9:00–10:30am at Edinburgh Remakery.